All four did and have made it through to the final four, albeit with some bumps to negotiate along the way.
France are the favourites having cruised through the tournament behind a fearsome front four, but Spain stand in the way in a third Semi Final meeting in a third different competition from 2024 to 2026. Both previous matches have been won by Spain, but they have needed very late goals to beat Portugal and Belgium and the only real positive is avoiding having to go through Extra Time.
In real terms, both France and Spain have made pretty comfortable passage, but Argentina and England have been forced to dig deep.
The defending World Champions have twice needed to win games in Extra Time and came from 0-2 behind to beat Egypt with an injury time winner to avoid all three matches needing the additional thirty minutes. This accumulation can wear teams down and Argentina have looked fragile and heavily reliant on Lionel Messi, which is a disappointment considering the bid to develop since winning in Qatar.
Where Argentina have one superstar stepping up, England have had both Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham provide big moments and stopping both is the challenge.
However, nothing has come easy for England after battling from behind to beat both DR Congo and Norway, the latter in Extra Time, while they also came through an epic battle in Mexico City to beat one of the co-hosts 2-3 in a memorable World Cup fixture.
All four teams at this stage of the competition will be confident, but you have to believe the winner of the France-Spain Semi Final will be going on to lift the trophy on Sunday, regardless of who they face in the Final.
Things could look very different at the end of the Semi Final Round, but it would be a surprise from here as the 2026 World Cup Finals wind down.
World Cup Semi Final Picks
Tuesday 14th July
France vs Spain Pick: The Euro 2024 Semi Final and the 2025 Nations League Semi Final matches were both won by Spain, but there has been a feeling in this tournament that the French team are playing at a superior level.
Strong attacking play will always make the headlines more than strong defensive work and Spain will still be feeling confident about their chances.
They will certainly believe they have come through a tougher pathway in the Knock Out Rounds and that can mean being more battle-tested. Wins over Austria, Portugal and Belgium means Spain are used to that rhythm and tempo provided by European opponents and those opponents make for better reading than France seeing off Sweden, Paraguay and Morocco.
It is not the fault of the French that they have not had to play Germany or a full strength Morocco, but Spain may take something from the fact that France did struggle to break down the last two of those opponents. We have certainly not seen a full performance from France in the tournament, which does make them dangerous, but Spain may feel they can contain the attacks to some extent, whilst also giving France so much more to think about on the defensive side of the field compared with the last three Knock Out opponents.
Spain should take heart from the chances Senegal and Sweden created before they fell behind and France have yet to had to battle back from adversity.
The same can be said for Spain, who have also not been behind in the tournament, but they have had to dig in to beat Portugal and Belgium and that will give the team confidence. Having Nico Williams back is also a big confidence builder for Spain, even if he cannot start, and the European Champions have shown they can hurt a vulnerable France defence over the last couple of years.
France have tended to be the superior World Cup team compared with Spain, who have been much stronger in the continental tournaments, but this has the makings of a classic World Cup Semi Final.
Whoever scores first will be confident, but it should be noted that recent games between these European neighbours have tended to be very competitive and with the attacking players usually coming out on top.
So while World Cup Semi Final matches can become tight and tense, this may be one where both teams feel they can hurt the other and it may be another fixture between France and Spain that ends with at least three goals shared out.
Wednesday 15th July
England vs Argentina Pick: There is little love lost between these nations and they are meeting in the biggest game between the rivals in the history of this sport.
Making a World Cup Final is obviously the motivation, but there will be a huge amount of pain for the loser to absorb if going down to the other in this Semi Final.
Both England and Argentina will know that they need to improve to beat the other and the squad that has dealt best with the Extra Time needed to win Quarter Final matches will have the edge.
Superstar names have stepped up for both nations during what have been inconsistent performances in the Knock Out Rounds and the defences have really had problems. That could be the case in this Semi Final with both England and Argentina going to be feeling like the attacking players can hurt the other and it may be a game in which one of the teams will make one too many errors to hand the game to other.
Lionel Messi, Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham will receive the attention, but it could be a player at the back taking an unnecessary risk that proves costly.
Both teams will have their moments, but both are likely going to be relying on Emiliano Martinez and Jordan Pickford to step up when they are asked questions.
Out of the two, Martinez may just give Argentina the edge, but England have to know the defending World Champions are not looking nearly as good as they did in Qatar.
This has all of the makings of a tense night in both nations in a fixture that neither England nor Argentina dare to lose, but it could be one where the goalkeepers are forced into action more than some of the layers may think.
Extra Time and Penalties would not surprise anyone, but big saves are likely going to be needed before that and the defensive numbers have shown two teams that will give up shots on goal during this Knock Out run.
MY PICKS: France-Spain Over 2.5 Goals @ 1.95 William Hill (1 Unit)
England-Argentina Over 7.5 Match Shots on Target @ 2.00 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Semi Final:
Quarter Final: 2-2, - 0.12 Units (4 Units Staked, - 3% Yield)
Last 16: 6-2, + 2.52 Units (8 Units Staked, + 31.5o% Yield)
Last 32: 10-6, + 4.38 Units (16 Units Staked, + 27.38% Yield)
Group Stage MD 3: 11-11-1, - 1.29 Units (23 Units Staked, - 5.61% Yield)
Group Stage MD 2: 16-8, + 7.44 Units (24 Units Staked, + 31% Yield)
Group Stage MD 1: 12-12, - 0.30 Units (24 Units Staked, - 1.25% Yield)
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