Spain were humbled in an emphatic manner by the United States, a nation which to some Europeans is not "even supposed to know how to play the game", but a spirited side caused a major upset by defeating the European champions in the semi-finals of the Confederations Cup. It was Spain's first defeat in three years.

Contrary to common belief and expectation, it was the Americans who started the proceedings lively and with determination, a rhythm with which Spain struggled to cope and it wasn't long into the first half when goalkeeper Iker Casillas was harassed from both sides of his penalty area from Jozy Altidore and Charlie Davies.

If the European Champions were shocked at how the first 20 minutes had developed, then they didn't have to wait much longer as on the 26th minute Altidore netted home after receiving a fine pass and beating Casillas from the edge of the box.

The goal stung Spain and they tried to recover and reclaim some territory in the middle of the park, but it was the United States who missed on doubling their lead just before the break.

Second half under way, and Spain went as expected forward to attack. Fernando Torres was denied by goalkeeper Tim Howard, easily the man of the match on the day. Progressively, Spain stepped on the accelerator and applied more pressure on the Americans, with shots being fired from every conceivable direction at Howard from Torres, Cesc Fabregas and Sergio Ramos. With that, however, they also opened up at the back and in a crushing blow in the 73rd minute, the United States sealed their win with a second strike from a counter attack.

Clint Dempsey converted the opportunity presented by a Landon Donovan's pass from close range, propelling the US to the final and ensuring that the European champions would have a day to forget. Dempsey's drive also ended Spain's run of 15 straight wins and their 35-match unbeaten spell altogether.

"It's exciting, a great team effort. To beat an amazing team like Spain and make the final, it's big," said US coach Bob Bradley, quoted by the BBC. "We played as hard as we could and that's what it took. Every guy contributed, so it's a very good feeling."