World Cup 2026 pages
Sports · World Cup 2026 · Group I
Norwayvs
France
1–4
Full time · Friday, June 26, 2026 · 3:00 p.m. ET · Boston Stadium (Gillette Stadium), Foxborough, MA
Result
Ousmane Dembélé struck a 25-minute first-half hat-trick as France brushed aside a heavily-rotated Norway to win Group I. With both sides already qualified, Ståle Solbakken rested Erling Haaland and Martin Ødegaard, and Thelo Aasgaard's 21st-minute reply was as good as it got for the Norwegians — Jørgen Strand Larsen then had a second-half penalty saved by Mike Maignan. Désiré Doué headed a fourth in stoppage time to cap a comfortable night for Didier Deschamps' side.
Norway 4-3-34-2-3-1 FranceNorwaySubstitutions
At this Stage
Group I closed with its hierarchy intact and its footnotes worth reading. France finished perfect — nine points, ten scored, two conceded — after a 4-1 handling of a Norway side that, already qualified, rested Erling Haaland and Martin Ødegaard and paid for it, Ousmane Dembélé's first-half hat-trick doing most of the damage. Norway take second on six points, and here is the quirk: their +1 goal difference is worse than third-placed Senegal's +2, whose 5-0 demolition of Iraq arrived one win too late to buy anything more certain than a place in the best-third pool, where they now wait on other groups. Iraq exit bottom, pointless, twelve goals conceded. The final ledger is blunt: France never blinked, Norway never needed to, and Senegal's revival showed up a matchday after it might have changed things.
Group I
| Team | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +8 | 9 |
| Norway | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | +1 | 6 |
 Senegal | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | +2 | 3 |
 Iraq | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -11 | 0 |
Top two (above the accent line) advance to the round of 32; the third-placed team is in the race for one of the eight best-third spots.
What we know now
Venue: Boston Stadium
Attendance: 64,146
What I said beforehand
The preview, frozen at kickoff. Clearly dated, never rewritten — that's the deal that makes the predictions worth anything.
France to win a superb Group I decider. Norway have been one of the tournament's liveliest teams, beating Iraq 4-1 and Senegal 3-2, and Haaland plus Ødegaard give them a real route to first place. France, though, have combined control with cutting edge through Mbappé, Dembélé and Olise, and their 3-0 win over Iraq showed the defensive floor is high. Norway can score, but France should have enough to top the group. 2-1 France.
My locked pick: France win ✓ RIGHT
“France have opened Group I with wins over Senegal and Iraq and have not needed to chase games, while Norway also arrive perfect but have conceded three across two matches. France to win the group decider.”
Locked 2026-06-25 11:45 UTC — rendered verbatim from the pick ledger; never a fresher, hedged version
The case for Norway
30% to winNorway have momentum, goals and clarity: Haaland stretches the line, Ødegaard controls the pockets and Solbakken's side have already handled two different game states in Group I. If they press France into transitions and turn the match into a track meet, the nominal underdogs can win the group.
The case for France
45% to winFrance have the deeper squad and the steadier defensive record, with Maignan behind a back four that has protected leads well. Deschamps can let Norway come forward, then release Mbappé, Dembélé and Barcola into space. A draw is enough to keep them in control, but the attacking ceiling makes a win realistic.
Both cases written 2026-06-25, before kickoff — they freeze into the record exactly as written, however the match goes. The percentages are mine, quoted to a decimal because false precision is funnier — the unclaimed 25% belongs to the draw.
Storylines
- Both sides enter the finale with two wins, so this is a clean fight for Group I.
- Norway have scored freely but have also left space behind their full-backs.
- France have conceded once and can rotate attackers without changing the game model.
- The winner likely earns a more controlled round-of-32 path; the loser still advances.
The coaches
Ståle Solbakken Norway
In his second spell as Norway boss; built an organised, transition-focused side to harness Haaland and Ødegaard.
Didier Deschamps France
World Cup winner as player and coach; in charge since 2012, he pairs a pragmatic structure with elite attacking talent.
Weather: Warm Boston afternoon at the open-air stadium, roughly upper-70s Fahrenheit with a summer sea-breeze variable. (NWS seasonal climatology, as of 2026-06-25)
Venue: Boston Stadium (Gillette Stadium), Foxborough, MA, United States — FIFA strips sponsor names for the tournament; the everyday name is in parentheses.