France finish top of the group: Dembélé hat-trick, 4-1

In the final Group I match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, France beat Norway 4-1 away to finish top of the group. At Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Ousmane Dembélé's hat-trick was the star of the night. Norway, who had already secured qualification and rested their stars, suffered a heavy defeat against France's attacking power.

France started like a storm. In the 7th minute, off Kylian Mbappe's assist, Ousmane Dembélé cut inside from the right and opened the scoring with an exquisite finish. In the 20th minute, again meeting Mbappe's pass, Dembélé scored his second to double the lead. Norway found hope in the 21st minute through Thelo Aasgaard's goal, assisted by Andreas Schjelderup; on this goal, the ball went in off a deflection that wrong-footed Maignan. But Dembélé scored his third in the 32nd minute, off Aurélien Tchouameni's assist, to complete his hat-trick in the first half, and the half closed 3-1.

In the second half, Norway could not convert a penalty won in the 50th minute; Jorgen Strand Larsen's effort missed the target. Although France made wholesale rotation, resting stars like Dembélé and Mbappe, they held their superiority. The players who came on late also continued to create danger.

France set the final score in the 90+4th minute. Off Bradley Barcola's assist, Désiré Doué found the net to make it 4-1. The statistics produced an intriguing picture: although Norway led in expected goals (1.69-1.31), France used their chances far more efficiently to score four; they also led 18-10 in total shots. The match, refereed by Mark Oliver, was watched by 68,756 fans. With this result, France finished top of the group to earn a more favorable round-of-32 tie on paper, while Norway advanced in second.

Image: Al Jazeera