Football fans have reacted angrily after FIFA unveiled its fan-voted World Cup team of the tournament, which excluded Spain's Pau Cubarsi and Unai Simon despite their individual awards. Simon won the Golden Glove, and Cubarsi claimed the Young Player Award after Spain's victory over Argentina in Sunday's final.
Goalkeeper and defender snubbed
The fan vote selected Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha over Simon, even though Vozinha played only half as many matches. Vozinha kept a clean sheet against eventual winners Spain and made 18 saves across four games. Dayot Upamecano and Lisandro Martinez were chosen as central defenders ahead of Cubarsi, despite Martinez keeping only two clean sheets for runners-up Argentina.
Fans online voiced their displeasure on FIFA's social media post. One commented: "Golden glove winner is not the GK of the tournament. What a joke." Another asked: "Why is there no Cubarsi in the defence?" A further user responded on X: "This should be a prank, right? Where's Cubarsi? Where's Simon, who collected the Golden Glove?" One more questioned: "Martinez over Cubarsi? Are we for real... him, Laporte and Unai kept it only one goal all World Cup."
Midfield and forward selections
Fewer objections were raised about the rest of the side. England's Jude Bellingham, Michael Olise and Rodri formed the midfield trio. Despite winning the Golden Ball, Spain's captain secured just 15% of the vote, well behind Bronze Boot winner Bellingham's 29% and Olise's 19%. The front three consisted of Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi. Golden Boot and Bronze Ball winner Haaland led the vote with nearly 30%, followed by Haaland on 27% and Messi at 22%, who also won Silver Ball and Silver Boot.
Voting process
The vote remained open for 48 hours after the final. Fans cast ballots for standout players—one goalkeeper, one defender, one midfielder and one forward—after each round to compile a shortlist. The four winners from each round secured their place, joining "additional players identified by FIFA based on their performances during the tournament." Cubarsi failed to top the defender vote in seven rounds. Simon earned his spot with nearly 45% of the goalkeeper vote after the semi-finals, while Vozinha averaged 50% when winning in round one and the round of 32.
