PHILADELPHIA -UNS : France secured their place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 knockout stage with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Iraq on Monday, despite a lengthy weather interruption that delayed the second half by nearly two hours.
Captain Kylian Mbappé marked his 100th appearance for France in style, scoring twice and taking his tournament tally to four goals. His strikes came almost three hours apart due to the extended stoppage caused by thunderstorms around Philadelphia.
France coach Didier Deschamps praised his team’s performance after the unusual interruption.
“The first half was good, and after the delay we managed to continue our momentum and put the game beyond reach,” Deschamps said.
Mbappé’s brace moved him to 16 career World Cup goals, drawing level with German legend Miroslav Klose. He now trails Lionel Messi by one goal in the race for the tournament’s Golden Boot after Messi scored twice in Argentina’s 2-0 victory over Austria earlier in the day.
France took control in the 14th minute when Mbappé received a pass from Michael Olise, shifted the ball onto his left foot and fired a powerful shot into the net from outside the penalty area.
After the weather delay, Iraq’s hopes of a comeback faded quickly. Goalkeeper Ahmed Basil failed to deal with a short back pass from defender Zaid Tahseen in the 54th minute, allowing Ousmane Dembélé to set up Mbappé for an easy finish.
Dembélé then added a goal of his own in the 66th minute, calmly converting another excellent pass from Olise to seal the victory.
The result leaves France level on points with Norway at the top of Group I, with the two sides set to meet on Saturday to decide first place.
Iraq still have a slim chance of advancing as one of the best third-placed teams. However, they will likely need a victory over Senegal in their final group match and favorable results elsewhere. Their concerns were increased when striker Aymen Hussein was forced off with an apparent injury in the first half.
Substitute Ali Al-Hamadi admitted the weather delay made the challenge even tougher.
“You get a moment of brilliance from one of the best players in the world, then have to sit inside for nearly two hours. It’s difficult to maintain the same intensity against a team like France,” he said.
