MOSCOW, June 26: If Nostradamus has his way, Spain is all set to lift this year's football World Cup.

Spanish journalists have managed to find a prediction made by Nostradamus in 1555 about the outcome of the 2006 World Cup, Russian magazine 'Pravda' said in a report.

The 16th century author of prophecies wrote that "the Spanish king and his army will cross over the Pyrenees at the end of the sixth month of the sixth year. The king will win the battle with Beelzebub on the fields of Central Europe, and the army will return the Holy Grail to Spain".

Interpreting the prediction, journalists said "The Spanish king and his army" stands for the national Spanish football team and its coach Luis Aragones.

"The fields of Central Europe" stand for the football stadiums in Germany and "the Holy Grail" is the World Cup, the report said.

There is general consensus that Nostradamus accurately predicted the French Revolution, the rise of Napoleon and Hitler, both World Wars and the nuclear destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But will his prophecy hold true for the football World Cup?

Some fans point out that Spain has had a successful tournament so far and easily won all three of its league matches.

However, the first real test for Nostradamus' prophecy comes in Hanover on June 27 when Spain faces 1998 champions France for a place in the World Cup quarterfinals.