France, Norway Advance to 2026 World Cup Round of 16

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The national teams of France and Norway secured their places in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup after eliminating their respective opponents in the round of 32 matches on the early hours of Wednesday, July 1, 2026. France put on a convincing performance by defeating Sweden 3-0 at MetLife Stadium, New Jersey. Meanwhile, Norway overcame Ivory Coast 2-1 at AT&T Stadium, Arlington.

France's victory was sealed by two goals from Kylian Mbappe and one goal from Bradley Barcola. Les Bleus will next face Paraguay in the round of 16 at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, on Sunday, July 5, 2026, at 07:00 AM WIB (Western Indonesian Time).

Right from the start of the match, France immediately took the initiative to attack. Bradley Barcola had a threatening attempt on Sweden's goal, but his shot narrowly missed over the crossbar. Mbappe also managed to score a goal, but it was disallowed by the referee following a VAR review showing an offside position.

Under the guidance of Didier Deschamps, the team continued to press throughout the first half. After several missed opportunities, the deadlock was finally broken just before halftime. Mbappe scored a goal in the 45th minute to put France in the lead 1-0.

France's dominance continued after the break. In the 53rd minute, a pass from Michael Olise was well finished by Barcola to double the lead to 2-0. Olise almost added another goal shortly after, but the shot from the Bayern Munich player was still blocked by Sweden's goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom.

Mbappe ensured France's victory with his second goal in the 74th minute. He took advantage of Olise's breakthrough pass to change the score to 3-0. Until the final whistle, Sweden was unable to reduce the deficit.

In the other match, Norway had to work hard before eliminating Ivory Coast with a score of 2-1. Norway took the lead in the 39th minute through an individual effort by Antonio Nusa. Ivory Coast initially posed a threat through Nicolas Pepe, but their efforts were thwarted by Norway's defense.

Erling Haaland almost doubled the advantage before halftime, but his shot missed the target. On the other hand, Ivory Coast also had a chance through Emmanuel Agbadou's header which went wide.

Entering the second half, Ivory Coast increased the intensity of their attacks. Nicolas Pepe had another chance, but this time it was saved by goalkeeper Orjan Nyland. Ivory Coast's efforts paid off in the 74th minute. Amad Diallo scored through an individual effort to equalize the score to 1-1.

As the match seemed headed for extra time, Norway regained the lead. In the 86th minute, Patrick Berg sent a pass which was finished by Erling Haaland to secure the 2-1 victory.

Ivory Coast attempted to equalize in the remaining time, but Norway managed to maintain the lead until the end of the game. This result took Norway to the round of 16. Under the guidance of Stale Solbakken, the team will face Brazil at MetLife Stadium, New Jersey, on Monday, July 6, 2026, at 03:00 AM WIB.

Read: France Cruise Past Sweden as Kylian Mbappe Sets World Cup Record

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