World Cup 2026: France shake off slow start to beat Senegal 3-1 in Group I opener

France opened their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign with a hard-fought 3-1 victory over Senegal, eventually pulling away in the second half after a difficult first half of limited opportunities

The two-time world champions struggled to find their rhythm at the start of the contest at MetLife Stadium, with Senegal creating the better chances before the break.

However, Didier Deschamps’ side returned from the break with greater intensity and control, as Kylian Mbappé and Bradley Barcola delivered the decisive moments to secure all three points.

Senegal, meanwhile, will be left to rue missed opportunities in a first half where they looked the more threatening side but failed to make their dominance count.

The first major warning came in the 25th minute when Nicolas Jackson came agonisingly close. Latching onto space inside the box, he fired a powerful effort towards the goal, only to see it crash off the left post with the goalkeeper beaten.

Deep into first-half stoppage time, Senegal carved out another opening. A clever pass from Sadio Mané released Ismaïla Sarr in the box, but under pressure, he blazed his effort well over the crossbar, wasting a big chance to put his side ahead.

France improved after the restart and began to assert themselves. In the 53rd minute, Michael Olise showed excellent awareness inside the area and struck goalwards from close range, but the Senegal goalkeeper produced a superb save to keep the score level.

Moments later, Mbappé found space in the box and tested the goalkeeper again, before briefly going down under a challenge in what looked like a penalty shout. However, after a VAR review, the referee waved play on, ruling there was no infringement.

The breakthrough finally arrived in the 66th minute. After a flowing team move, Mbappé latched onto a perfectly timed pass and drilled a low finish into the net, giving France the lead with a clinical strike.

Senegal thought they had responded almost immediately when Nicolas Jackson found the net, but the celebrations were cut short as the goal was ruled out for offside.

France sealed the result late in the 82nd minute. Adrien Rabiot played a smart ball into the box, finding Bradley Barcola, who produced a composed chipped finish to make it 2-0 and put the game beyond Senegal’s reach.

Late in added time, Senegal pulled one back through Ibrahim Mbaye and thought there was a chance to take something out of the game.

However, Mbappe settled the contest just moments later with an outrageous effort from way out that flew into the back of the net to send the stadium into a frenzy.

In the end, France’s quality in the final third proved decisive, as they weathered Senegal’s early pressure and late threat to take all three points.