Kylian Mbappé scored France’s first two goals, with Ousmane Dembélé adding the other in a 3-0 win against Iraq.
Kylian Mbappé delivered his second brace of the tournament, leading France to a 3-0 victory over Iraq in a World Cup match that was significantly delayed by adverse weather conditions.
Mbappé’s goals came nearly three hours apart following thunderstorms that delayed the second-half kickoff by almost two hours. The reigning Ballon d’Or winner now has 16 all-time World Cup goals, matching former record holder Miroslav Klose. Earlier on Monday, Lionel Messi set a new benchmark of 18 career World Cup goals with his brace in Argentina’s 2-0 victory over Austria.
Mbappé’s four goals also place him one behind Messi in the 2026 Golden Boot race. Ousmane Dembélé scored after halftime for two-time champions France (2-0-0, 6 points), all but assured of progressing to the knockout stages.
Their advancement will be confirmed if Norway draws or wins against Senegal in the other Group I fixture. That match, held approximately two hours away by car in northern New Jersey, kicked off near-simultaneously with the second half in Philadelphia.
Iraq (0-2-0, 0 points) remains in contention for one of the eight knockout spots reserved for third-place teams. They will likely need a win against Senegal in their final group match and hope for favorable results elsewhere. Iraq may also be without Aymen Hussein, who scored their only tournament goal in their opener but exited with an apparent injury in the 26th minute.
France dominated early, with Mbappé scoring in the 14th minute. On an routine right-side sequence, Mbappé received Michael Olise’s pass, took one touch left, and fired a powerful strike beyond Ahmed Basil’s dive from the edge of the penalty area.
The delay could have given Iraq time to regroup, but the team continued to struggle. They gifted France a second goal on a poor defensive mistake during a goal kick. Dembélé set up Mbappé for a tap-in 12 minutes later after controlling Olise’s pass into the 18-yard box and finishing low past Basil.
While the result was never in doubt, weather provided late drama. After referee Drew Fischer paused the match at halftime as storms intensified, spectators sought shelter in stadium concourses. Players returned for warm-ups roughly 1 hour and 40 minutes later, but restart was further delayed as staff used squeegees to clear standing water from the east side of the pitch.
