France continued its impressive run at the 2026 World Cup, defeating Sweden 3-0 with Kylian Mbappé scoring twice to lead the team to a spot in the tournament’s Round of 16!

The “Tricolors” went 4-0 in the tournament, remaining unstoppable and showing that they are in excellent form heading into the next round. The other goal was scored by Bradleigh Barkola, while the formidable Michael Olise provided two assists.

Meanwhile, Mbappé made history, reaching 18 World Cup goals and moving into sole possession of second place on the all-time list. He has now surpassed Miroslav Klose and has only Lionel Messi—with 19 goals—ahead of him.

France’s next opponent will be the impressive Paraguay (July 5, 12:00 a.m.), one of the tournament’s surprises following its stunning penalty shootout victory over Germany.

The Match

The Scandinavians got off to a better start and even had the first chance of the match as early as the 3rd minute. Isaac received the ball on the edge of the box and took a shot from a good position, but his attempt went straight into Menian’s arms. France, for its part, started the game in its characteristic… conservative style, posing no threat whatsoever for quite some time, aside from weak long-range shots by Dinh and Mbappé in the 14th and 17th minutes, respectively.

The first chance for the “Tricolores” came from an impressive individual effort by Barkola, who in the 20th minute went on a solo run and finished the play with his left foot, but the ball sailed over Zetterström’s crossbar. A few seconds later, Mbappé found the net, but the goal was disallowed for offside.

The French began to significantly ramp up their pressure, with Rabiot taking a shot all by himself from a wide angle and Zetterström making a save in the 30th minute. Less than a minute later, Mbappé found himself unmarked in the box, but his shot hit the left post.

Four minutes later (36′), it was Michael Olise’s turn to threaten, with the French attacking midfielder attempting a powerful volley just outside the box that struck the right post. As the play unfolded, Ousmane Dembélé found himself in a scoring position but was unable to put the ball in the net. Olise also threatened with a nice chip shot from outside the box in the 43rd minute, but the ball went just wide.

Sweden couldn’t hold out for long under such a “siege,” and France finally took the lead in the 45th minute thanks to… the usual suspect, Kylian Mbappé. The Real Madrid superstar cut into the box from the left and fired a stunning right-footed shot, leaving Zetterström helpless to react.

In stoppage time at the end of the first half, Sweden had a huge chance to respond immediately. Anthony Elanga tried to drive the ball into the box but his shot was blocked, while Elliot Stroud found himself in a position for an easy goal but missed from close range.

The second half began just as the first had ended. France continued to press and very quickly took a two-goal lead, with Olise delivering a brilliant through ball that Barkola converted with a spectacular finish in the 53rd minute.

Although Sweden had their backs against the wall, it was the French who continued to press, coming close to making it 3-0 in the 61st minute when Olisse made yet another fine shot on goal, but Zetterström was ready. About ten minutes later, the Bayern attacking midfielder had another chance in a one-on-one situation, but his poor control allowed the Swedish goalkeeper to make the save.

Finally, the unstoppable Mbappé put the game beyond doubt with yet another goal. The French superstar received another fantastic pass from Olise and finished perfectly to make it 3-0 in the 74th minute, with the “Tricolores” doing whatever they wanted on the field. From there on, both teams had their moments, with France ultimately securing an easy victory and advancing to the Round of 16.

The starting lineups:

France (Deschamps): Menian, Dinh (78’ T. Hernández), Upamecano, Koundé (75’ Gusto), Saliba, Chouameni, Rabiot, Dembélé (75’ Doué), Mbappé (85’ Mateta), Olise (85’ Serki), Barkola.

Sweden (Potter): Zetterström, Lagerbielke, Lindelöf, Gudmundsson, Svensson (82’ Svanberg), Straud (66’ Ali), Bergwall (66’ Zeneli), Ajari (82’ Nigrén), Isak (89’ Nilsson), Elanga, Jökeres.

*photo source: AP