France Advances to the Quarter-Finals! Mbappe Became the Determining Figure Behind Their Victory Over Paraguay.

France national team secured their spot in the 2026 World Cup quarter-finals after defeating Paraguay by a narrow 1-0 scoreline in the round of 16 match held at Philadelphia Stadium, United States on Sunday, 5 July 2026. Kylian Mbappé was Les Bleus' match winner, scoring the only goal of the game from the penalty spot in the second half.

This positive result sends France through to the last eight, where they will face Morocco. The Atlas Lions had already booked their quarter-final ticket earlier after beating Canada 3-0.

From the opening kick-off, France played dominantly and controlled the flow of the match. That said, Paraguay's solid defensive organisation left Didier Deschamps' side struggling to create dangerous chances throughout the entire first half.

Most of France's threats came from set piece situations. Jules Koundé had a golden opportunity following a corner kick delivery, but his shot was easily collected by Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill.

Elsewhere, Manu Koné and Adrien Rabiot also tried their luck with efforts from outside the penalty area. Neither attempt was able to break the deadlock however, as the first half ended goalless.

Entering the second half, Les Bleus upped their tempo and continued to press Paraguay's defence. Kylian Mbappé almost opened the scoring with a rapid counter attack, only for Juan Jose Caceres to stop his run before he could get a shot away.

France finally got their breakthrough in the 70th minute. The referee awarded a penalty after reviewing VAR footage, ruling that Diego Gomez had fouled Désiré Doué inside the penalty box.

Stepping up as the designated taker, Mbappé converted perfectly. The French captain placed the ball into the bottom left corner of the goal, wrongfooting Orlando Gill to put Les Bleus 1-0 ahead.

After taking the lead, France did not ease off the pressure. Mbappé created another chance with a solo dribbling run, only for another excellent save from Gill to deny him once again.

Paraguay came extremely close to equalising after Dayot Upamecano made an error at the back. Mauricio capitalised on the mistake to fire a shot on target, but Mike Maignan reacted quickly to pull off a vital stop.

Deep into injury time, Mbappé nearly grabbed his second goal. The Real Madrid forward's strike was parried by Orlando Gill, who followed up with a second save to secure the loose rebound.

The 1-0 scoreline remained until the final whistle. France progress to the 2026 World Cup quarter-finals, and will now prepare to face Morocco in their semi-final qualification tie.