France vs Iraq | FIFA World Cup 2026 — Group Stage | Preview and Prediction
A supremely confident France side will fancy their chances of getting all three points to reach the round of 32 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup as they square off against Iraq, who know that a defeat here against the last edition’s runners-up will eliminate them from the tournament.
For the game, here we present our preview and prediction.
FIFA WC26 | Group I: FRA vs IRQ | 02:30 IST, 23 June 2026
France began their World Cup 2026 campaign with a 3–1 win against Senegal, but their performance was a classic example of a game of two halves that gave us two different iterations of the same side. The first half was stodgy, lazy, lethargic, and discombobulated. The attack didn’t feel in sync, and everyone was trying to be a little too unselfish. The French defence was also not at its best and was put under pressure by the movement and physicality of the Senegalese forward line.
However, the second half gave us a glimpse of Les Bleus in their element, and that is a terrifying prospect for all the other teams in the competition. Kylian Mbappé once again brought out his France version as he helped himself to a brace, while Bradley Barcola came off the bench to score the other goal. Ousmane Dembélé and Michael Olise also made key contributions in the game as they eventually took care of business against the African giants.
One thing France will want to avoid is another slow and sluggish start against Iraq, so they’ll try to get into their stride as quickly as possible.
Iraq gave a good account of themselves against Norway in their opening game, but they were just not able to keep up with the sheer physicality and imposing stature of their Norwegian counterparts as they fell to a 4–1 defeat. The Lions of Mesopotamia tried to do too many things but were not able to pull most of them off. There was an element of fear and trepidation while they had the ball, and that was evident in the third goal when their goalkeeper dawdled too much, only for Erling Haaland to come and score off his moment of hesitation.
For all the admiration for Iraq and their journey to the World Cup, it is very hard to look beyond France as the favourites to win this game. Expect the 2018 World Cup champions to win by a very convincing margin.
Score Prediction: France 4–0 Iraq
Venue: Philadelphia Stadium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
