France Seal Round Of 32 Spot As Mbappe Thrives With Brace In 3-0 Win Over Iraq

Published 23 June 2026 · sports

France Seal Round Of 32 Spot As Mbappe Thrives With Brace In 3-0 Win Over Iraq Curated By, Last Updated: June 23, 2026, 06:59 IST

France Seal Round Of 32 Spot As Mbappe Thrives With Brace In 3-0 Win Over Iraq Curated By, Last Updated: June 23, 2026, 06:59 IST Kylian Mbappe marked his 100th France cap with a brace as Les Bleus beat Iraq 3-0 after a two-hour storm delay, moving closer to Lionel Messi’s World Cup scoring record. Rapid Read (Credit: AP) Kylian Mbappe celebrated his 100th appearance for France in the only way he knows how — by scoring goals. The French captain struck twice as Les Bleus defeated Iraq 3-0 in Philadelphia on Monday, overcoming a dramatic two-hour weather delay to secure their second straight victory at the FIFA World Cup 2026 and book a place in the Round of 32. Ousmane Dembele was also on target for the tournament favourites, but the night once again belonged to Mbappe. The Real Madrid superstar opened the scoring in the 14th minute with a trademark finish, controlling a pass before unleashing a powerful strike from 20 metres that Iraq goalkeeper Ahmed Basil could do little about.

The goal continued Mbappe’s remarkable scoring streak. After netting twice against Senegal in France’s opening 3-1 victory, he added another brace here to move onto 16 World Cup goals in just 16 tournament appearances. That tally now puts him level with Germany legend Miroslav Klose and ahead of Brazilian great Ronaldo Nazario on the all-time World Cup scoring list. Only Lionel Messi, who earlier reached a record 18 World Cup goals with a brace against Austria, sits ahead of him. Storm Brings Match To A Standstill While France controlled proceedings on the pitch, the biggest challenge of the evening arrived from the skies. Heavy rain began falling towards the end of the first half before a severe storm swept across Philadelphia. At the break, fans inside Lincoln Financial Field were instructed to leave their seats and seek shelter in covered areas. With most of the 68,324-capacity stadium uncovered, thousands packed into the concourses while players remained in the dressing rooms awaiting clearance to resume.

The second half eventually restarted more than two hours later, becoming the first World Cup match of the tournament to be delayed by weather. France Punish Iraq’s Errors Any hopes Iraq had of mounting a comeback disappeared shortly after play resumed. A disastrous mi up between defender Zaid Tahseen and goalkeeper Basil gifted France a second goal in the 54th minute. Dembele pounced on the loose ball and squared for Mbappe, who had the simplest of finishes. Michael Olise then rattled the crossbar before turning provider for Dembele, who fired home France’s third in the 66th minute. For Iraq, the defeat leaves them on the brink of elimination after also losing 4-1 to Norway in their opener. France, meanwhile, are safely through and will next face Erling Haaland’s Norway in what promises to be one of the standout fixtures of the group stage. (with AFP inputs) News18 Newsletter Handpicked stories, in your inbox A newsletter with the best of our journalism submit About the Author Siddarth Sriram After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas.