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Philadelphia, PA – The France National Team battled to a 1-0 victory over Paraguay in a 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 16 match on Saturday evening.
The match kicked off at Lincoln Financial Field to a crowd of 80,000.
Starting XI between France & Paraguay.
France starting lineup: 4-2-3-1 | Mike Maignan, Jules Koundé, William Saliba, Dayot Upamencano, Lucas Digne, Manu Koné, Adrien Rabiot, Bradley Barcola, Michael Olise, Ousmane Dembélé, Kylian Mbappé (C)
France substitutes: |Brice Samba, Robin Risser, Désiré Doué, Rayan Cherki, Ibrahima Konaté, Theo Hernández, Lucas Hernández, Malo Gusto, Maxence Lacroix, Aurélien Tchouaméni, N’Golo Kante, Warren Zaïre-Emery, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Magnes Akliouche, Marcus Thuram
Paraguay starting lineup: 5-4-1 | Orlando Gill, Gustavo Velázquez, Gustavo Gómez, Omar Alderete, Juan Cáceres, Júnior Alonso, Miguel Almirón, Diego Gómez, Andrés Cubas, Matías Galarza, Julio Enciso
Paraguay substitutes: | Gastón Olveira, Roberto Fernández, Alexandro Maidana, Fabián Balbuena, José Canale, Alejandro Romero, Braian Ojeda, Damián Bobadilla, Mauricio, Álex Arce, Antonio Sanabria, Gabriel Ávalos, Gustavo Caballero, Isidro Pitta, Ramón Sosa
Officials: | Ilgiz Tantashev (Center Official), Andrey Tsapenko (AR1), Timur Gaynullin (AR2), Abdulrahman Al Jassim (4th official), & Juan Lara (Video Assistant Referee).
C'est parti à Philadelphie 🔥 🔛
Objectif : se qualifier en 1/4 de finale 💪🇵🇾🇫🇷 l #PARFRA l #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/qnOQx5ELmu
— Equipe de France ⭐⭐ (@equipedefrance) July 4, 2026
The match kicked off with France immediately launching the ball into Paraguay’s defensive third, looking to pin their opponents back and establish an early foothold in the match.
France’s first big chance came in the 7th minute, but Miguel Almirón deflected the effort behind for a corner that came to nothing.
In the 19th minute, France midfielder Bradley Barcola was shown a yellow card for a heavy foul on Juan Cáceres.
Manu Koné had the first chance for either side in the 22nd minute when his left-footed shot from outside the box was blocked and cleared away.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – JULY 04: Players scuffle after Kylian Mbappe #10 of France is fouled by Andres Cubas #14 of Paraguay during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 match between Paraguay and France at Philadelphia Stadium on July 04, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Júnior Alonso and Diego Gómez both had chances for Paraguay in the 28th minute, but their efforts missed to the right of the post.
France’s next chance came in the 33rd minute when Adrien Rabiot’s left-footed shot from outside the box went over the bar.
Ousmane Dembélé had the next chance just five minutes later when his left-footed effort from the right side of the box was blocked behind for a corner, which came to nothing.
France had the final two chances of the half in the 44th minute, as Manu Koné fired high and wide before Adrien Rabiot’s effort was blocked and cleared.
After the initial 45+4 minutes, the match entered halftime with the scoreline level at 0-0.
Halftime between France & Paraguay
Paraguay opened the second half on the front foot, quickly sending the ball into France’s defensive third as they looked to apply early pressure.
Adrien Rabiot had the first chance of the second half in the 49th minute when his effort sailed just over the bar.
Less than a minute later, Miguel Almirón had an effort of his own for Paraguay that was deflected behind for a corner, which came to nothing.
Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé both had huge chances in the 52nd minute, with Mbappé’s breakaway effort deflected behind for a corner before Dembélé’s quick attempt from the restart missed just left of the net.
Manu Koné had the best chance of the match in the 54th minute, but goalkeeper Orlando Gill produced a spectacular save to deny his long-range effort.
Paraguay’s goalkeeper #12 Orlando Gill makes a save during the 2026 World Cup round of 16 football match between Paraguay and France at the Philadelphia Stadium in Philadelphia on July 4, 2026. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP via Getty Images)
In the 57th minute, Paraguay head coach Gustavo Alfaro was forced into his first substitution of the match, replacing Omar Alderete with José Canale.
In the 60th minute, both teams made changes. Paraguay head coach Gustavo Alfaro was forced into his second substitution of the match, replacing Julio Enciso with Gustavo Caballero, while France head coach Didier Deschamps made his first change, bringing on Désiré Doué for Bradley Barcola.
Kylian Mbappé had the next chance for France in the 64th minute, but his effort from outside the area went over the bar.
Entering the 70th minute, France were awarded a penalty kick after a foul inside the penalty area on Desire Doue.
MBAPPÉ GOAAAL OFF THE PENALTY 🇫🇷
He scores his 19th career World Cup goal to put France up 1-0 🔥 pic.twitter.com/4XlZLlHSjV
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 4, 2026
Kylian Mbappé stepped up and buried the ensuing penalty to give France a 1-0 lead.
Following the goal, Paraguay head coach Gustavo Alfaro made two changes, bringing on Gabriel Ávalos and Mauricio for Diego Gómez and Miguel Almirón.
In the 81st minute, Manu Koné was shown a yellow card for a heavy foul on Juan Cáceres.
In the 84th minute, France head coach Didier Deschamps replaced Ousmane Dembélé with Rayan Cherki.
Kylian Mbappé had the next chance for France in the 89th minute, but his effort from outside the box was saved low in the bottom-right corner.
France’s final chance of the match came in the 90+6 minute when Kylian Mbappé saw two efforts denied by goalkeeper Orlando Gill.
In the 90+7 minute, France forward Michael Olise was shown a yellow card for a heavy foul on Matías Galarza.
After 90+11 minutes, the match concluded in a 1-0 victory for France.
Full Time between France & Paraguay.
Paraguay have been eliminated from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The France National Team now travel to take on the Morocco National Team in a 2026 FIFA World Cup Quarterfinal match. The match will kick off in Foxborough, Massachusetts, at Gillette Stadium on Thursday, July 9th at 4:00 p.m. EST.
