Match Affected by Weather, France Secure Place in the Round of 32
Kylian Mbappé remained the focal point as he scored two goals in his 100th appearance for France, helping his team defeat Iraq 3-0 in the Group I 2026 World Cup qualifier at Philadelphia Stadium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 22. The match was delayed for 2 hours and 10 minutes in the first half due to thunderstorms in the area.
France started the match strongly, and Mbappé marked his historic appearance just in the 14th minute. He executed a one-two with Michael Olise, who then sent the ball to Mbappé, who curled a beautiful shot into the net despite being blocked by Iraq's goalkeeper, Ahmed Basil.
Iraq made a substitution when Ali Al Hamadi replaced Aymen Hussein, who was injured, after the halftime break. Al Hamadi had a slight impact when his header narrowly missed the target after entering the field. Mbappé then attempted a shot from the center of the field after Zaid Ismael's mistake, but the ball flew over the crossbar.
Second Half: France Dominate
Iraq were the first to make a mistake after returning to the field in the second half. Zaid Tahseen's short shot hit Mbappé, and the ball fell to Ousmane Dembélé, who selflessly passed it to Mbappé for France's second goal in the 54th minute.
Olise then hit the crossbar with a beautiful lob, followed by Dembélé's first shot being saved by Basil, and Adrien Rabiot could only head wide. However, Dembélé finally ended his long goal drought in a major tournament in the 66th minute. After being struck by the post earlier, Dembélé cleverly turned and fired low past Basil for France's third goal.
Iraq tried to score a consolation goal when Al Hamadi rushed to push the ball out under pressure from Lucas Digne, but France remained dominant, with Mbappé missing a chance for a hat-trick as his shot went wide.
Mbappé Closes in on Messi
Lionel Messi was the main headline earlier on Monday by becoming the all-time top scorer in the World Cup with 18 goals, but Mbappé is not far behind, matching Miroslav Klose's record of 16 goals. Mbappé is the 10th player to reach 100 appearances for the French men's national team, and the youngest to do so at 27 years and 184 days.
Mbappé's first goal in this match came from outside the penalty box, making two of his last three World Cup goals come from outside the box, compared to just one of his first 13 goals. Mbappé is also the fourth player to score 2+ goals in at least three consecutive World Cup appearances, alongside Sandor Kocsis (1954), Guillermo Stabile (1930), and Lionel Messi (2026).
Dembélé Finally Scores
Although Mbappé was the focus, it was also a big day for Dembélé. He scored his first goal in a major tournament on his 20th appearance; 13 of them were in the World Cup. Before this, Dembélé was the European winger with the most appearances in a major tournament without scoring a goal.
Iraq now needs a win against Senegal if they want to advance as one of the best third-place teams. However, they have created many problems themselves; only Tunisia (5) has made more mistakes leading to goals than Iraq (3) in the 2026 World Cup.
Opta Facts After the Match
- Four of Dembélé's five assists for France are for Mbappé.
- Michael Olise has provided three assists in his first two World Cup matches, one more than he managed in his first 17 appearances for France. Olise is the third French player to provide two assists in a single World Cup match in the 21st century, after Karim Benzema (2014 vs Switzerland) and Antoine Griezmann (2022 vs England).
- Mbappé became the fourth player to score 2+ goals in at least three consecutive World Cup appearances (alongside Kocsis, Stabile, and Messi).
- Mbappé has 16 World Cup goals, only Messi (18) has more. This is the sixth time he has scored at least two goals in a single World Cup match, more than any other player.
- Didier Deschamps secured his 16th World Cup victory as France's manager, equaling Helmut Schön's record.
- Iraq has lost all five World Cup matches. Only El Salvador (6) has played more matches without avoiding a loss. Iraq is the first Asian country to lose all five of its opening matches in the tournament.
- France is guaranteed a place in the 2026 World Cup knockout stage, advancing to this stage in eight consecutive major tournaments; only Argentina has a longer streak (14, including 2026).
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*Original source: [theanalyst.com](https://theanalyst.com/articles/france-vs-iraq-stats-world-cup-2026)*