France have become the first-ever side to win by three goals or more in five successive matches as they hammered Sweden 3-0 in a FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match on Tuesday.
Updated: July 1, 2026, 10:51 AM IST
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France’s Kylian Mbappe celebrates after scoring against Sweden in FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match. (Photo: IANS)
France vs Sweden FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32: France became the first-ever nation to win five successive matches with a margin of three or more goals as they booked their place in the pre-quarters of FIFA World Cup 2026 with a 3-0 win over Sweden at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Tuesday. The star of the win was once again French captain Kylian Mbappe, who once again scored a brace to set a new World Cup record of score most goals in knockout matches – 10 goals in 9 matches and 18 goals overall.
Mbappe has also drawn level with Argentina’s Lionel Messi with six goals in the FIFA World Cup 2026 and has become the highest-scoring European football star in World Cup history with 18 goals, going past Germany’s Miroslav Klose’s tally of 16. The Real Madrid striker is just one goal behind Messi’s highest-ever tally of 19 goals, which he achieved in the current tournament.
France have become the first nation in World Cup history to win seven games in a row against UEFA sides:
◉ 1-0 vs Belgium (2018)
◉ 4-2 vs Croatia (2018)
◉ 2-1 vs Denmark (2022)
◉ 3-1 vs Poland (2022)
◉ 2-1 vs England (2022)
◉ 4-1 vs Norway (2026)
◉ 3-0 vs Sweden (2026)… pic.twitter.com/N0YB9bYcn2— Squawka (@Squawka) June 30, 2026
Mbappe scored the opening goal with a brilliant crossover step in the 45th minute and added his sixth goal of the tournament in the 74th to tie with Messi. He has 18 goals in 18 World Cup games, one behind the Argentine’s career scoring record of 19 in 29 matches. In between Mbappe’s brilliance, Bradley Barcola had a 53rd-minute goal for France.
“I’m very aware of who I am, how I play, what I shall do, but it’s not just about me. The entire team is aware of what should be done. It is a new competition that has started today. We did play well, but we were timid. We could have done better at the beginning,” Mbappe was quoted as saying by AP news agency.
France coach Didier Deschamps bowed down to his captain Mbappe when he came to the bench after he was substituted in the 85th minute. “We’re on a mission — so am I with them,” Deschamps said.
France have outscored opponents 13-2. Michael Olise has five assists, the most in a World Cup since Germany’s Thomas Hassler had five in 1994. “They are skilled at knowing when to change the pace and increase it, when to possess the ball, went to fall back,” Sweden captain Victor Lindelof said after the Round of 32 match.
The 2018 World Cup champions are aiming to reach their third successive World Cup final, and will take on Paraguay on July 4 in Philadelphia. The winner advances to a quarterfinal against Canada or Morocco five days later at Foxborough, Massachusetts.
France managed outshot Sweden 25-7 in the first World Cup meeting between the nations, including 15-3 in the first half. Mbappe hit the post in the 32nd minute and France nearly went ahead four minutes later on Olise’s spectacular bicycle kick from just inside the penalty area, which also clanked off a post.
A crowd of 80,663 at the MetLife Stadium raised the record total for the 104-match tournament above 5 million. A majority of fans wore France’s colours, with a small batch in Sweden’s yellow at one end.
(How to watch and stream FIFA World Cup 2026 in India: Multiple group-stage matches that will take place simultaneously will be aired across Zee5 app and website. Link: https://www.zee5.com/)
