Team Dossier: France — two stars, one last chapter, and a ghost from 2002

Didier Deschamps is walking out the door. He's said it out loud: this is his final tournament. The man who won the 1998 World Cup as a captain is trying to win it a second time as a manager, and at 57 he has assembled the deepest squad in this field to do it. If France fall short in North America, it won't be for lack of talent.

The question hanging over Group I isn't whether France qualify. It's whether Kylian Mbappé — carrying a knee that gave him trouble all spring — can sustain the ruthlessness required to make a World Cup campaign. And whether Deschamps' last act is the one everyone will remember.

France are in Group I alongside Senegal, Norway, and Iraq. All three games are in the eastern United States 1:

The June 26 showdown with Norway at Boston's Gillette Stadium is the one to circle. France beat Brazil 2-1 at that exact venue in March — Tchouaméni winning the ball high, Dembélé threading Mbappé through, Ekitike doubling the lead — with ten men. Norway, powered by Erling Haaland, will be the group's stiffest test of France's ability to protect leads and close out matches 2.

Goalkeepers: Mike Maignan (AC Milan), Brice Samba, Robin Risser

Defenders: Kounde, Malo Gusto, Saliba, Upamecano, Konaté, Lacroix, Theo Hernández, Lucas Hernández, Lucas Digne

Midfielders: Tchouaméni, Rabiot, Kanté, Zaïre-Emery, Manu Koné

Forwards: Mbappé, Dembélé, Olise, Doué, Cherki, Barcola, Marcus Thuram, Akliouche, Mateta

The notable absences: Eduardo Camavinga (limited Real Madrid minutes, injury), Randal Kolo Muani (lost the battle for the final striker spot to Jean-Philippe Mateta), and Hugo Ekitike — who had been emerging as a genuine attacking option before a serious Achilles injury in the Champions League quarterfinals ended his tournament before it started 3. Deschamps' selection logic is ruthless: Ekitike's injury left the second striker spot open, and Doué, Cherki and Barcola are all competing for it.

The base shape is a 4-2-3-1 with Aurélien Tchouaméni and Adrien Rabiot in a double pivot, protecting a back four while releasing the wide attackers and Mbappé to press high and create in the spaces their pressing generates 2.

Predicted XI: Maignan; Kounde, Saliba, Upamecano, Théo Hernández; Tchouaméni, Rabiot; Olise, Dembélé, Doué; Mbappé.

Michael Olise moves from right wing — where he spent the season as arguably the best player in the world in that position — to a No. 10 role, which gives Deschamps a central creative axis alongside Dembélé's directness from the right. Mbappé operates as a free striker, drifting left to isolate defenders in one-on-ones. At full speed, nobody in this group stops him.

The one genuine structural concern is the center-back pairing. Saliba missed the March friendlies through injury and Maxence Lacroix stepped in well, but the final choice between Saliba, Upamecano and Konaté as Saliba's partner is still unsettled. That decision matters most against Norway's physical direct play and Haaland's aerial threat.

There is one occasion in history when France and Senegal have met at a World Cup. It was the opening match in Seoul in 2002, and Senegal beat the reigning champions 1–0 with a Pape Bouba Diop goal in the 30th minute — one of the most famous upsets in tournament history 4.

That match follows both teams into East Rutherford on June 16. Senegal come in as reigning AFCON champions — a title awarded under controversy after a referee dispute saw coach Pape Thiaw order his players off the pitch in protest, only for Edouard Mendy to save a penalty in extra time before Pape Gueye scored the winner. CAF stripped the title on appeal; the case is still at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Whether that unresolved anger is a distraction or a galvanizing force, nobody quite knows. Sadio Mané, almost certainly playing his last major tournament, will be the emotional fulcrum of a team with the quality and motivation to make life very difficult for France on a hot June afternoon in New Jersey.

France have won the World Cup twice — 1998 as hosts, 2018 in Russia. They were runners-up in 2006 (beaten by Italy on penalties in Berlin) and finished second again in Qatar 2022, losing to Argentina in arguably the best final in the tournament's history: two Mbappé goals to level at 2–2 in the 80th minute, then three more in extra time and penalties. France scored four goals in a World Cup final and still lost.

Deschamps captained the 1998 squad. He has managed the team since 2012 — 14 uninterrupted years. After this tournament he steps down, with Zinedine Zidane widely expected to take over. That context gives every press conference in North America a slightly elegiac quality.

1. Mbappé vs. the knockout calendar. His knee meant he was carefully managed at Real Madrid this spring. Deschamps will almost certainly rotate him through the Iraq game and keep something in reserve. The question is whether he peaks at the right time — in the quarter-final and beyond — or whether the minutes management leaves him short of rhythm when it matters.

2. The second striker competition. With Ekitike out, Désiré Doué, Rayan Cherki and Bradley Barcola are all fighting for real minutes off the bench. Cherki's Champions League form at Lyon was exceptional; Doué scored twice against Colombia in March. Whoever Deschamps trusts here could be the difference in a tight knockout match.

3. Norway at full strength vs. France. Erling Haaland scored 16 goals in qualifying and ended Norway's 28-year World Cup absence by netting in an 4-1 win at the San Siro. Martin Odegaard came into the tournament with a knee concern. If both are fit and sharp on June 26 in Boston, France face a team capable of winning the group. That game is not a formality.

France are the second favorites to win this tournament, Spain narrowly ahead of them in the odds 3. With this squad — Maignan, Kounde, Saliba, Theo Hernández, Tchouaméni, Rabiot, Dembélé, Olise, Mbappé — they should win Group I comfortably, survive the round of 32 and probably advance to the quarter-finals without a serious scare. The real test arrives there, where the bracket could throw Spain, Germany or Portugal at them. That's when Deschamps' ability to adapt, and Mbappé's ability to deliver in the big moment, will determine whether this ends as a farewell or a coronation.

Quote of the Day: "I won't hide behind false modesty — we're here to win." — Didier Deschamps, June 2026, on his final World Cup as France manager.