France secured a 4-1 victory over Norway in their World Cup group stage match on Friday at Foxborough, Massachusetts, highlighted by Ousmane Dembélé’s remarkable first-half hat trick. Dembélé opened the scoring in the seventh minute with a goal set up by Kylian Mbappé, who nearly scored himself within the opening seconds of the match. Dembélé added two more goals before halftime, striking in the 20th and 32nd minutes, marking the first first-half hat trick at a World Cup since Oleg Salenko’s feat in 1994.
Norway responded quickly after halftime, with Thelo Aasgaard scoring just 14 seconds into the second half to narrow the deficit. However, Dembélé restored France’s two-goal lead less than nine minutes later. Désiré Doué added a late goal during stoppage time to finalize the score. Dembélé, the 2025 Ballon d’Or winner, departed the game in the 65th minute and was replaced by Bradley Barcola.
The Norwegian lineup featured significant rotation, resting key players including star striker Erling Haaland and opting for Egil Selvik in goal instead of the regular Orjan Nyland. This decision drew mixed views, with some questioning the strategy given Norway’s chance to top the group, while others noted the opportunity for squad members to gain valuable World Cup experience.
France had already secured advancement to the knockout stage prior to the match, while Norway clinched second place in the group. France’s performance showcased their attacking depth, with several players contributing beyond Dembélé and Mbappé, including Michael Olise and Doué. The French side demonstrated a blend of technical skill and tactical variety, a reflection of the country’s longstanding investment in football development programs.
Elsewhere, Senegal boosted its qualification hopes with a commanding 5-0 win over Iraq in Toronto. Despite playing a man down after Iraq defender Rebin Sulaka received a red card in the 13th minute for denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity, Senegal managed to control the match. Habib Diarra opened the scoring early, and Ismaila Sarr, Pape Gueye—who scored twice—and Iliman Ndiaye also found the net. Senegal moved to three points with a positive goal difference, enhancing their chances of advancing as one of the best third-placed teams. Iraq, making its first World Cup appearance since 1986, was eliminated after failing to register a point.
In Group D, Australia and Paraguay played to a goalless draw in Santa Clara, California. The result secured Australia’s progression to the knockout rounds and improved Paraguay’s prospects of advancement. The cautious approach from both sides reflected their shared objective of avoiding defeat in a tightly contested group stage under the tournament’s expanded format, which allows eight of the 12 third-place teams to advance.
As the group stage concludes, teams like France are positioning themselves as contenders, while others continue to vie for knockout round qualification under new tournament dynamics that reward not only wins but goal difference and individual scoring performances.