One of the most dominant forces in the global game over the last three decades, France have sealed qualification for their 17th FIFA World Cup™, a landmark event at which they have featured in the last eight editions and reigned supreme twice, in 1998 and 2018.
Didier Deschamps’ men will head into the 48-team FIFA World Cup 2026™ with ambitions of becoming only the second European nation to contest the tournament decider three times in a row, after West Germany achieved the feat between 1982 and 1990. They will also be travelling to North America intent on erasing the memory of the devastating defeat to Argentina in Qatar.
Read on to find out more about Les Bleus’ FIFA World Cup story.
France coach: Didier Deschamps
From captaining the World Cup-winning class of 1998 to masterminding glory at the 2018 instalment on Russian soil, Deschamps has been pivotal to the French national team’s finest achievements. When he stands down following France’s campaign at the upcoming global showpiece, he will have spent no fewer than 14 years in the hot seat, which speaks volumes about his tactical nous, winning mentality and natural talent for rallying his troops.
Having led his charges to the quarter-finals at the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™, the Bayonne-born tactician then guided them to the pinnacle of world football four years later, establishing himself as one of the elite trio to have hoisted the trophy aloft as both captain and coach, alongside legendary Brazilian Mario Zagallo and West Germany’s iconic Franz Beckenbauer.
After leading Les Bleus to the runners-up spot in Qatar, Deschamps could go down in history by becoming the first-ever coach to reach three back-to-back World Cup finals. A tilt at a third title may seem like a tall order, but there could be no better challenge to bring the curtain down on a glittering reign, following the conclusion of the event in North America.
France World Cup 2026 fixtures and group
Full World Cup 2026 match schedule
How France qualified for the World Cup 2026
Les Tricolores booked their ticket to the global extravaganza on 13 November 2025 on the fifth matchday in Group D of their UEFA qualifying campaign. On that night, France gave Ukraine a serious dose of the blues in a 4-0 win at Parc des Princes, spurred on by a decisive double from their captain Kylian Mbappe, who racked up his 54th and 55th goals for his country.
France navigated their six qualifying matches without tasting defeat. Iceland were the only side to deny them victory, holding their illustrious opponents to a 2-2 draw in Reykjavik. Deschamps’ men boasted the group’s most potent attack, hitting the mark 16 times, and the meanest defence, with only four goals conceded. Their success was underpinned by their talismanic skipper, who bagged five times, ably assisted by Michael Olise and Jean-Philippe Mateta, who chipped in with two goals apiece. In addition, Maghnes Akliouche, Bradley Barcola, Hugo Ekitike, Christopher Nkunku, Adrien Rabiot and Florian Thauvin all got on the scoresheet once during qualifying.
France’s World Cup history
France’s first World Cup
France took part in the first-ever World Cup in Uruguay in 1930. Following a 13-day voyage across the seas, Les Bleus emerged 4-1 victors in their opener against Mexico, with Lucien Laurent becoming the first player to find the back of the net at the global bonanza. The squad, coached on a voluntary basis by Gaston Barreau – who stayed back in Paris to fulfil his professional duties at the Conservatoire of Music – failed to trouble the scoreboard in their two other group matches against Argentina and Chile, losing both games by the narrowest of margins. Although they were eliminated in the first round, the French pioneers headed home with the singular satisfaction of having broken new ground.
France’s last World Cup
France’s campaign at Qatar 2022 was one that lent itself to contrasting readings – some more optimistic than others. Those inclined to see the glass half full might point to the fact that the titlists enjoyed a stellar tournament that culminated in a second successive final appearance.
In contrast, the glass looks rather more empty to those who dwell on the agonising drama of the trophy decider, in which Mbappe’s hat-trick heroics were in vain as Argentina prevailed 4-2 in a nail-biting penalty shootout, following a breathtaking bout that ended 3-3 after extra time.
Mbappe’s eight goals earned him the adidas Golden Boot, but that was scant consolation for Deschamps’ star-studded squad, who were left ruing the missed opportunity to stitch a third star on to their shirts.
France’s memorable World Cup moments
In the years since they tasted the thrill of being trailblazers in 1930, France have experienced the full gamut of emotions that come with gracing FIFA’s flagship event.
At the 1958 instalment in Sweden, a talented team featuring Just Fontaine and Raymond Kopa savoured their first intoxicating rush of the tournament as they clinched the final podium place. In 1982 and in the edition contested four years later, a side spearheaded by Michel Platini battled their way to the final four, with absorbing encounters against West Germany in Seville, where they were edged out 5-4 on penalties after the European heavyweights had shared a 3-3 stalemate, and against Brazil in Guadalajara, in a contest in which they enjoyed a 4-3 shootout success following a 1-1 draw after extra time.
Zinedine Zidane’s golden generation etched their names into French football folklore by clinching the trophy on home turf courtesy of a memorable 3-0 victory over a Ronaldo-inspired Brazil side. However, the world champions endured bitter disappointment in the following edition in Japan and Korea Republic, where they crashed out after the group stage in a campaign that featured a headline-grabbing 1-0 loss to Senegal in the tournament
curtain-raiser.
The final of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™, in which the French succumbed to Italy 5-3 on penalties following a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes of rip-roaring action – remains a painful memory, as does the defeat to Argentina in their most recent tournament outing. As for the competition in South Africa in 2010, tensions came to a head in a chaotic campaign when Raymond Domenech’s mutinous squad refused to train as the team finished rock bottom of Group A. Eight years later and steered by Deschamps and inspired by standout performances from Antoine Griezmann, Mbappe, Paul Pogba and Samuel Umtiti, Les Bleus lifted the sport’s most coveted prize for the second time when they defeated Croatia 4-2 in Russia.
France’s World Cup top scorer
A single World Cup campaign was enough for Fontaine to secure his spot in the pantheon of French greats. At the 1958 FIFA World Cup Sweden™, the Marrakech-born marksman found the net in each of his six outings, notching 13 times all told.
France were propelled to a third-place finish in the competition thanks to the sharpshooter’s ruthless finishing, with the frontman still holding the record for the highest number of goals scored at a single edition. Having chalked up 12 strikes over the past two tournaments (four in 2018 and eight in 2022), Mbappe has a real shot of eclipsing his celebrated compatriot in 2026 to become Les Tricolores’ leading scorer at the tournament.
France’s record World Cup appearance maker
With 20 appearances to his name, Hugo Lloris is Les Bleus’ most-capped player on the World Cup stage. The LAFC shot-stopper, who announced his retirement from the international game in January 2023, kept goal in the four editions of the global showpiece contested between 2010 and 2022 and reached two tournament deciders, including the one in which he captained his side to victory in Russia in 2018. Should France reach the semi-finals or beyond at the World Cup 2026 and Mbappe features in every game, the Bondy-born baller – who currently has 14 appearances under his belt – would surpass Lloris’ tally.
