Round of 32 · Match 12

SpainvsAustria

2026-07-02·12:00 local·SoFi Stadium · Los AngelesPredictions finalised

Snapshot · 2026-07-14Model 1.0.0Final prediction · locked 2 Jul, 23:39 UTCSpain·Austria·
Full time · forecast gradedSpain 3 0 AustriaThe locked pre-match forecast has been graded against this result.See the calibration recap →

Match signals

Factors that favour each side, from statistical models to group stage form and match conditions. Longer bars = stronger advantage.

SpainSignal balanceAustria
89%11%

Spain are dominant at 70% vs Austria's 8%. Quality, form, and model estimates all point the same way. An upset here would be a major story.

📊What the Models Say

5 Spain
77%Elo Rating Model1%
StrongStrong

Rates teams by a single strength number updated after every match. Simpler but fast to react. It rates Spain at 77% to win vs Austria at 1%.

66%Dixon-Coles Model12%
StrongStrong

Simulates the goal-scoring process using attack and defence strength. The heaviest-weighted model. It rates Spain at 66% to win vs Austria at 12%.

63%Hierarchical Poisson14%
StrongStrong

Groups teams by confederation to share information. Helps for teams with fewer matches. It rates Spain at 63% to win vs Austria at 14%.

70%Final Ensemble8%
StrongStrong

The published probability after calibration and adjustments. This is what the model says. It rates Spain at 70% to win vs Austria at 8%.

3/3Model Agreement0/3
StrongStrong

All 3 models agree: Spain is favoured. When models agree, the signal is stronger.

Tournament Form

4 Spain
16pts (5W 1D 0L)Tournament Record4pts (1W 1D 2L)
StrongStrong

Spain collected 16 points (5W 1D 0L) vs Austria's 4 (1W 1D 2L). A stronger tournament record.

1.83/matchGoals Scored1.5/match
SlightSlight

Spain averaged 1.83 goals per match vs Austria's 1.5. More firepower coming in.

0.17 conceded/matchDefence2.25 conceded/match
StrongStrong

Spain conceded just 0.17 goals/match vs Austria's 2.25. Tighter at the back.

+10Goal Difference-3
StrongStrong

Spain's goal difference of +10 is better than Austria's -3. They outperformed opponents by more.

📈Momentum

1 Spain1 Austria
+10.6Tournament Rating Change-3.5
SlightSlight

Spain's rating rose +10.6 during the tournament while Austria's moved -3.5. The tournament has been kinder to Spain.

-0.0096Player Form Trend-0.0004
ModerateModerate

Austria's players improved their form ratings during the tournament (-0.0004) vs Spain (-0.0096). Players trending upward.

🏆Team Quality

3 Spain1 Austria
2165Overall Strength (Elo)1827
StrongStrong

Spain is rated 2165 vs Austria's 1827 (gap: 338). That's a very large gap in historical team strength.

1.87 xGExpected Chance Creation0.67 xG
StrongStrong

The model expects Spain to create 1.87 expected goals vs Austria's 0.67. More and better chances projected.

0.34Star Power0.54
ModerateModerate

Austria's top 3 starters are harder to replace (avg VORP 0.54) than Spain's (0.34). More star power in key positions.

0.018Squad Familiarity0.011
SlightSlight

Spain's starters play together at club level more often (0.018 cohesion) than Austria's (0.011). More shared understanding on the pitch.

🌍Match Conditions

9,370kmTravel Distance9,812km
Even

Similar travel distances for both teams.

16 signals across 5 categories. Signal strength reflects how large the gap is between the two teams on each factor. Signals are descriptive, not prescriptive.

La previsione

Match-outcome probability

  • Spain win
    57.5%
  • Draw
    27.1%
  • Austria win
    15.4%

A 338-point Elo gap frames this as a significant mismatch, yet the model still gives Austria a 8% probability of a result — enough to make this more than a formality.

Likeliest score1–014.2%
First goal0-15'34.5%
Both teams score41.8%
Over 2.5 goals46.5%
Top scorerOyarzabal9.8%
Expected goals1.9 - 0.7
Loading pitch visualisation...

Gol e punteggi

Likeliest score 1–0 (14.2%) · xG 1.9 - 0.7

Expected goals

Spain
1.87
Austria
0.67

Mean of the Dixon-Coles joint goal distribution. Same fit that produces the most-likely-scoreline list below.

Most likely scorelines

  • 1–0
    14.2%
  • 2–0
    13.8%
  • 1–1
    10.5%
  • 2–1
    9.2%
  • 3–0
    8.6%

From the Dixon-Coles joint Poisson with the low-score correction. Scorelines are listed in probability order; this is a description of the model's distribution, not a recommendation.

Most likely half-time scorelines

  • 0–0
    28.7%
  • 1–0
    25.8%
  • 2–0
    12.3%
  • 1–1
    9.3%
  • 0–1
    8.9%

Same Dixon-Coles fit as the full-time list above, with rates halved to a 45-minute window and the low-score correction applied to that 1st-half block. The 0-0 row sits higher here than at full-time because fewer minutes have elapsed.

Goal totals

  • More than 0.5 goals
    91.5%
  • More than 1.5 goals
    72.6%
  • More than 2.5 goals
    46.5%
  • More than 3.5 goals
    25.0%
  • More than 4.5 goals
    11.4%
  • More than 5.5 goals
    4.4%
  • Both teams score
    41.8%

Each row is the probability the match finishes with more than the listed number of goals. Both-teams-to-score is the probability each side scores at least once. All values are marginals of the Dixon-Coles joint goal grid that produces the scoreline list above — not market lines or any other operator construct.

Event-typed probabilities

  • Spain clean sheetOpposing team scores zero51.3%
  • Austria clean sheetOpposing team scores zero15.4%

Derived from the same Dixon-Coles joint distribution as the scoreline list. These are descriptive event probabilities — see CLAUDE.md §3/§4 (formerly COMPLIANCE.md §4.2.7) for the framing the project uses.

Win-margin probability

  • Spain by 4+
    7.7%
  • Spain by 3+
    19.4%
  • Spain by 2+
    39.9%
  • Spain by 1+
    65.4%
  • Draw
    22.6%
  • Austria by 1+
    12.0%
  • Austria by 2+
    3.3%
  • Austria by 3+
    0.6%
  • Austria by 4+
    0.1%

Each row is the probability the match ends with the listed margin or larger in that direction. Marginal of the Dixon-Coles joint goal grid; the “by 1+” rows plus the draw row sum to 1.

Come si sviluppa la partita

Over 2.5 goals 46.5% · BTTS 41.8%

Game state through the match

0%25%50%75%100%0'15'30'45'60'75'90'
  • Spain ahead66.0%
  • Level21.3%
  • Austria ahead12.6%

Probability of each game state at minutes 0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90 — derived from two independent thinned-Poisson processes with the Dixon-Coles per-team rates. The three lines always sum to 1 at each minute. The right column shows the state at the match's closing minute.

When the first goal arrives

  • 0–15
    34.5%
  • 15–30
    22.6%
  • 30–45
    14.8%
  • 45–60
    9.7%
  • 60–75
    6.4%
  • 75–90
    4.2%
  • No goal
    7.9%

Probability the match's first goal arrives in each 15-minute window. Homogeneous Poisson with combined rate λ = λh + λa from the Dixon-Coles fit; the seven rows (six windows + no-goal tail) sum to 1.

Half-time / full-time grid

Joint probability of half-time and full-time results
HT ↓ / FT →HSpain winDDrawAAustria win
HSpain ahead44.8%3.5%0.6%
DLevel19.1%14.6%5.0%
AAustria ahead2.1%3.4%6.9%

Each cell is P(half-time result, full-time result). All nine cells sum to 1. Derived from a halved-λ Dixon-Coles fit for the first half plus an independent-Poisson second-half convolution.

Comeback probability

  • Spain trail at HT, avoid defeat at FT
    5.5%
  • Austria trail at HT, avoid defeat at FT
    4.2%

Joint probability — P(side trailing at half-time AND avoiding defeat at full-time). NOT conditional on trailing at HT. Derived from the same half-time / full-time decomposition that produces the HT/FT grid above; a tied first half is neither a home nor an away comeback opportunity.

PK shootout simulator

If the match ends level after extra time, the model estimates the shootout outcome from each team's Bayesian-smoothed conversion / save rate (Model #15). The bracket simulator uses the symmetric (averaged) ordering; the two what-if scenarios below show how the win probabilities shift when conditioning on which team kicks first.

Symmetric (averaged over both orderings — used by the bracket simulator)
  • Spain
    57.4%
  • Austria
    42.6%
If Spain kicks first
  • Spain
    69.7%
  • Austria
    30.3%
If Austria kicks first
  • Spain
    45.4%
  • Austria
    54.6%
Expected paired rounds
4.8
Decided in regulation 5 kicks
73.2%

First-kicker advantage

The first kicker's per-kick conversion rate is scaled by ×1.050 (about +5.0%), stacked on the Markov chain's structural asymmetry. Real World Cup shootouts use a coin toss for kicker order, so on average the order is 50/50 — the symmetric path above is the relevant number for a single fixture. The ordering-conditioned probabilities are a descriptive what-if scenario.

Literature: first kickers win ≈ 60% historically (Apesteguia & Palacios-Huerta, American Economic Review 2010; Vandebroek et al. 2016).

Per-team posteriors: Spain conv 72.5%, save 25.0%Austria conv 72.0%, save 20.0%. Smoothed against the global prior with prior strength 20 — see /docs/methodology/.

Squadre e giocatori

Top scorer: Oyarzabal (9.8%)

Match detail

Spain

Model-rated key players: Mikel Oyarzabal (FW) — P(scores) 9.8%; Ferran Torres (FW) — P(scores) 3.9%; Lamine Yamal (FW) — P(scores) 3.5%.

How they play

Spain under Luis de la Fuente play a possession dominant game, holding 68% of the ball — among the highest in the tournament field. Their likely shape is a 4-3-3. They press intensely (PPDA 15.7, top quartile (4th of 40)) and build patiently through midfield with 10.0 passes per attacking sequence. They generate a high volume of shots (15.3 per 90).

What they must execute

To succeed, Spain must control tempo and territory in midfield — their possession-dominant approach depends on dictating the rhythm of each match.

Storylines
Club core: 8 of 26 predicted-squad players play their club football for Barcelona — a single-club spine on the international side.
Club xG: Squad averages 1.85 xG per match across club football last season — #3 of 20 in the field for attacking pedigree from each player's domestic side (23 of 26 players matched to a known club).
Teen starter: Lamine Yamal18 at kickoff — 25 caps — projected on the bench, the squad's youngest pick.

Austria

Model-rated key players: Marcel Sabitzer (MF) — P(scores) 6.3%; Marko Arnautović (FW) — P(scores) 3.2%; Michael Gregoritsch (FW) — P(scores) 3.1%.

How they play

Austria under Ralf Rangnick play a high press game with 53% possession. They apply moderate pressing intensity (PPDA 17.0).

What they must execute

Austria need their high press to force turnovers in dangerous areas — if opponents can play through the press, the space left behind is vulnerable. Physical conditioning and squad rotation will be critical to sustain pressing intensity across a long tournament. Managing minutes for Marko Arnautović across what could be seven matches will test the coaching staff's rotation planning.

Storylines
Last dance: Marko Arnautović37 at kickoff with 132 caps — probably his final World Cup.
Top-league core: 21 of 26 predicted-squad players played in a top-5 European league last season — top-tier league pedigree across the squad.
From the spot: Converted only 3 of 5 career penalties (60%) — a wasteful record from the spot in knockouts.
Workload going in

Spain's predicted XI averages 1,633 club minutes over the 2024-25 season (light load). Austria's predicted XI averages 1,262 club minutes over the 2024-25 season (light load).

Spain coverage: 81.0% (9/11 XI matched against the FBref Big-5) · Austria: 89.0% (10/11).

Set-piece outlook

Spain historically converts 17.4% of xG from set-pieces, contributing 0.33 expected set-piece goals in this fixture. Austria converts 11.2% from set-pieces (0.07 expected). Combined, the model expects 0.40 set-piece goals across the 90 minutes.

  • P(Spain scores set-piece goal) 27.8%
  • P(Austria scores set-piece goal) 7.2%
  • P(set-piece goal in match) 33.0%

Spain: Mikel Oyarzabal on corners (56 corners), Aleix García on free kicks (per fbref 2021 22) · Austria: Alessandro Schöpf on corners (24 corners), Florian Grillitsch on free kicks (per fbref 2021 22)

Penalty outlook

If a penalty is awarded to Spain, the model gives 72.5% conversion, 72.0% for Austria. If this match goes to a shootout, the symmetric (coin-toss averaged) win probability is 57.4% Spain / 42.6% Austria.

Spain primary PK: Mikel Oyarzabal (4/5 in 2021-22, per fbref 2021 22) · Austria primary PK: Marcel Sabitzer (4/4 in 2020-21, per fbref 2021 22).

Derived from the model's per-fixture forecast joint and supporting reference data (predicted squads, set-piece xG share, PK posteriors, club minutes). See /docs/methodology/ for the full methodology.

Squad depth

Most irreplaceable starters

Spain

  1. Dani OlmoAttacking midfieldNo natural backup0.51gap
  2. RodriDefensive midfieldCover: Martín Zubimendi · 0.390.27gap
  3. Ferran TorresStrikerCover: Borja Iglesias · 0.650.26gap

Austria

  1. Konrad LaimerFull-backCover: Phillipp Mwene · 0.280.58gap
  2. Saša KalajdžićStrikerNo natural backup0.55gap
  3. Michael GregoritschStrikerNo natural backup0.50gap

Gap = how far a side's rating at the position falls from the starter to his likely in-squad replacement (named under each name). Larger = harder to replace. Descriptive metric, does not feed the published probabilities. Methodology →

Match conditions

  • AltitudeNear sea level26 m
  • Avg temperatureFive-year mean over the tournament window20.8 °C
  • Avg humidity70%
  • Heat stressShade WBGT ~22.5 °CLow heat stress
  • Pitch surfacetemporary natural grass over artificial turf

Indoor artificial-turf stadium; natural grass is grown on a drainage-tray system over the turf under the translucent roof.

Heat stress is a shade Wet-Bulb Globe Temperature proxy from the venue's climatology mean temperature and humidity; FIFA mandates cooling breaks at WBGT 32 °C. Afternoon kickoff (local time). These are long-window averages, not a match-day forecast, and they are not inputs to the forecast.

Top scorers · P(scores in this match)

Per-player scoring rate from Model #5 (`p_score_per_match`). Reflects each player's npxG/90, expected minutes, team xG share, and the average opposing-team defence. See /docs/methodology/.

Recent match form

Last match player ratings

Spain

vs Uruguay · avg 7.4

8
Mikel OyarzabalLW
ATK
DEF
PAS
8
Borja MayoralST
ATK
DEF
PAS
8
Marc CucurellaLB
ATK
DEF
PAS
7
Fabián RuizCM
ATK
DEF
PAS
7
Álex BaenaCM
ATK
DEF
PAS
7
M. ARAUJOCB
ATK
DEF
PAS
7
Aymeric LaporteCB
ATK
DEF
PAS

Austria

vs Algeria · avg 7.7

8
ArnautovićST
ATK
DEF
PAS
8
KalajdzicST
ATK
DEF
PAS
7
LaimerRM
ATK
DEF
PAS

Player scores from official highlight analysis of each team's most recent match. Observational, not a model input. Methodology →

Video analysis: player performance

Per-player ratings and event breakdowns from official highlights analysis. Tap a player to see their full match timeline.

Spain
8
Mikel Oyarzabal19'–37'

Scored Spain's crucial opening goal with a clinical and composed finish, breaking the deadlock.

1goals

Match timeline

19'The referee engages in discussion with players, including Alexander Schlager (Austria GK #1) and Mikel Oyarzabal (Spain #21), regarding the disallowed goal.
37'Mikel Oyarzabal (Spain #21) opens the scoring for Spain with a precise finish, making it 1-0.
8
Dani Olmo

Was a constant attacking threat, forcing a brilliant save and hitting the woodwork twice, unlucky not to score.

8
Pedro Porro115'–115'

Scored Spain's second goal with a well-timed run and composed finish from his full-back position.

1goals

Match timeline

115'Pedro Porro (Spain #12) arrives in the box to convert, doubling Spain's advantage to 2-0.
8
Marc Cucurella130'–136'

Was a significant attacking presence, hitting the post before scoring Spain's third goal to seal the victory.

1goals1shots

Match timeline

130'Marc Cucurella (Spain #24) sees his shot rebound off the post.
136'Marc Cucurella (Spain #24) scores Spain's third goal with a composed finish from inside the area.
Austria
9
Alexander Schlager19'–106'

Made multiple crucial and impressive saves, preventing a much larger defeat for Austria despite conceding three goals.

2saves

Match timeline

19'The referee engages in discussion with players, including Alexander Schlager (Austria GK #1) and Mikel Oyarzabal (Spain #21), regarding the disallowed goal.
29'A powerful shot from Spanish Attacker #10 is brilliantly parried away by Alexander Schlager (Austria GK #1).
106'Alexander Schlager (Austria GK #1) makes a smart reaction save from a close-range header.

Match observations

  • Spain secured a dominant 3-0 victory over Austria in a match where they consistently created scoring opportunities.
  • Despite an early disallowed goal, Spain maintained their attacking intensity and found their rhythm in front of goal.
  • Austria's goalkeeper, Alexander Schlager, was a standout performer, making numerous saves to limit the scoreline.

Dietro le quinte

Model-by-model comparison

Spain vs Austria

High disagreement (14.3%)
ModelWeightHomeDrawAway
EloRating-based strength estimate32%
77.3%
22.0%
0.7%
Dixon-ColesGoal-process model with low-score correction63%
66.1%
22.0%
11.9%
Hierarchical PoissonBayesian model with confederation pooling6%
63.0%
22.5%
14.5%
Bayesian stackingLearned-weight combination
78.0%
19.7%
2.3%
Ensemble (published)Uniform average + isotonic calibration
69.7%
22.5%
7.8%
Home spread: 14.3%
Draw spread: 0.5%
Away spread: 13.8%
How each model works
Elo
Each team carries a single strength rating updated after every match by a margin-aware K-factor. Match probabilities come from the logistic function of the rating gap. Elo is fast-adapting but coarse — it sees only who won and by how much, not how the goals were scored.
Dixon-Coles
A Poisson regression on team-level attack and defence parameters, fitted via maximum likelihood with an exponential time-decay weighting. The Dixon-Coles correction adjusts the four low-score cells (0-0, 1-0, 0-1, 1-1) where independent Poisson underestimates dependence. Produces full scoreline distributions, not just H/D/A.
Hierarchical Poisson
A Bayesian Poisson model fitted via MCMC (PyMC) with hierarchical priors that pool attack and defence parameters within confederations. Shrinks small-sample teams toward their confederation mean — helpful for nations with few recent competitive fixtures. Slower to fit but better-calibrated on the tails.
Bayesian stacking
Optimises simplex weights (w_elo, w_dc, w_hp) to maximise the leave-one-out log-score across a walk-forward backtest (Yao et al. 2018). The result is a weighted average of the three component models' probabilities, then isotonic-calibrated. Adds no extra features — just learns which component to trust more from historical accuracy.
Ensemble (published)
Equal-weight average of all three component models, followed by per-class isotonic regression calibration fitted on 24 months of walk-forward out-of-fold predictions. This is the probability published on the site. The uniform mean is deliberately simple — it avoids overfitting to the stacking weights' training window.

Three independent component models feed two combination strategies. The uniform ensemble is the published probability; Bayesian stacking uses learned weights. Amber bars flag >5pp divergence from the published number. Full methodology

Latest news & match context

Match conditions
Stage:
Round of 32 · Match 12
Date:
2 Jul
Venue:
SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles
Beyond the model

Ranked by likely importance. None of these feed the forecast: the probabilities rest on team strength, venue conditions and the style matchup.

  1. 1.Elimination stakes: A one-off elimination tie. Motivation, risk appetite and game management under tournament pressure are not model inputs; the forecast rests on team strength and the style matchup.
  2. 2.Rest differential: Spain have had 6 days since their previous match versus 5 for Austria. Rest and recovery are not model inputs.
Availability

Spain

Spain come in at close to full strength.

Austria

Austria come in at close to full strength.

What it means

Spain and Austria both come in at close to full strength, so the forecast rests on baseline team strength rather than late team-news swings.

Availability from the predicted squads and injury feed; forecast adjustments from the model's own decomposition. See /docs/methodology/.

Standard Pass

Questa partita è un'anteprima gratuita

Stai vedendo la previsione completa del modello per questa partita gratuitamente. Accedi alla stessa profondità di analisi (probabilità, gol attesi, distribuzioni dei punteggi e marcatori per giocatore) per tutte le 104 partite con uno Standard Pass, valido per tutto il torneo.

Acquista il Pass — $15

Every forecast graded against the real result, scored on 987 matches since 2014. See the scorecard.

24h money-back, no questions asked·No subscription, no auto-renewal·Access through 31 Dec 2026. See refund policy.