France shows class after a rough start: 1-3 victory over Senegal in the World Cup opener

France started the 2026 World Cup with three points. In New York, Les Bleus had a tough time before halftime against an aggressive and dangerous Senegal, but after the break the title favorite made the difference: 1-3. Kylian Mbappé was the big man with two goals, while substitute Bradley Barcola also found the net.

National coach Didier Deschamps started with an attacking formation: Mbappé in the point, with Ousmane Dembélé, Desiré Doué and Michael Olise behind it. Big names like Rayan Cherki, Marcus Thuram, Warren Zaire-Emery and Barcola started on the bench. Despite dominance in possession, France created little in the first half, while Senegal had the best chances. Nicolas Jackson hit the post and saw the ball roll just wide via Mike Maignan, and just before half-time Ismaïla Sarr shot over from close range.


After halftime, a VAR moment was central: Sadio Mané hooked Mbappé, but despite contact, the Iranian referee did not point to the spot. Even after viewing the images, the verdict remained: no penalty. Shortly afterwards, France did break the ban. A razor-sharp pass from Olise put Mbappé face to face with Édouard Mendy; the French captain remained cool: 0-1.

Senegal seemed to respond quickly, but Jackson's phenomenal drive was canceled for offside. France then struck again through substitute Barcola, who subtly chipped a beautiful deep pass from Adrien Rabiot over Mendy: 0-2. In extra time, substitute Ibrahim Mbaye (Paris Saint-Germain) brought back the tension with a beautiful goal, but straight from the kick-off Mbappé decided the game with a great long-range shot: 1-3.

For Mbappé, it was his 58th goal in the France shirt, making him pass Olivier Giroud as Les Bleus' all-time top scorer. France and Senegal are in Group I; Later in the night, Norway and Iraq will compete against each other in the same group.

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