Thursday, October 1, 2026
79 ° Clear
79 ° Clear
It was another packed house on Saturday evening as fans filed into Philadelphia Stadium for a World Cup Round of 16 Knockout match between France and Paraguay on the United States’ 250th Independence Day.
Prior to the game, Philadelphia's ‘The Roots’ and Idina Menzel, the voice of Elsa from Disney’s Frozen, serenaded the 4th of July crowd in Philadelphia awaiting kick-off under nearly triple-digit temperatures, accompanied by a Navy flyover during the United States’ National Anthem.
France, looking to become the second team to ever reach 3 consecutive World Cup finals, was the clear favorite coming into Saturday’s match - and Paraguay understood and planned for that. Just as they did against Germany, Paraguay was set to park the bus, make things chaotic, and look to frustrate and get under the skin of the French players whenever possible.
General view inside the stadium before the match
KYLE ROSS
Paraguay’s plan worked to perfection in the first half, facing just 5 shots from France in the opening 45 minutes, all of which were taken from outside the penalty area and failed to test goalkeeper Orlando Gill.
Almost any chance they could, Paraguay took the opportunity to get in the face of French players, doing anything possible to provoke Les Bleus into retaliating in hopes of giving themselves an advantage on the pitch. In the 35th minute, the two teams needed to be separated after a hard foul on Mbappé heightened tensions between them, but the referee did not hand out any cards.
France's Kylian Mbappe reacts with Paraguay's Juan Jose Caceres
JAMES LANG
In the 51st minute, Mbappé had an opportunity to break the deadlock after French goalkeeper Mike Maignan punted a ball that sent Les Bleus’ star behind Paraguay’s backline, but the ball was swept off his feet by Juan Cáceres just as Mbappé was ready to let his shot fly.
In the 55th minute, Kouadio Koné let a right-footed shot fly from outside the box, but Paraguay’s Orlando Hill pushed the ball over the bar with one hand for his first save of the match, keeping things scoreless.
France's Kylian Mbappe in action as he shoots at goal before the match Paraguay's Orlando Gill makes a save
OMAR AZIZ
About 10 minutes later, Désiré Doué danced through the penalty area and was brought down by Diego Gómez inside the box. After a VAR review, France was awarded a penalty and an opportunity to break the deadlock and put themselves in a position to secure their place in the World Cup quarterfinals.
And in the 68th minute, after a long review and some “Ice the Kicker” tactics by Paraguay, Kylian Mbappé stepped up to the spot and sent Orlando Gill the wrong way, slotting his shot into the right corner and giving France a 1-0 lead.
The goal from Mbappé was his 19th for France at the World Cup, putting him just one short of Lionel Messi for the most goals by any player at the World Cup all-time.
France's Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring their first goal
OMAR AZIZ
Les Bleus would go on to secure the 1-0 victory over Paraguay, their 2nd win at Philadelphia Stadium during the 2026 World Cup. The two teams came together after the final whistle as tensions flared, but French leadership did well to persuade everyone not to get involved in the antics of newly eliminated Paraguay.
After the two teams separated, Les Bleus were able to celebrate reaching their 3rd Straight World Cup Quarterfinal with fans at a sold-out Philadelphia Stadium.
It brings France into the quarterfinals, where they’ll face Morocco, which just defeated the Netherlands on penalties to advance. It’s one step closer to a 3rd straight World Cup Final for Didier Deschamps’ side, who would be competing for their 3rd straight World Cup title if it weren’t for Lionel Messi and Argentina stealing the trophy away from them at Qatar 2022.
|
Brazil |
Sunday, |
MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford |
Fox, Fox One, Telemundo, Peacock |
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Mexico |
Sunday, |
Estadio Azteca, |
Fox, Fox One, Telemundo, Peacock |
