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France and Norway concluded Day 2 of the with a perfect record of victories and have already secured their ticket to the Round of 32, while Senegal and Iraq have been mathematically eliminated without earning a single point.
The first two matchdays revealed a group without surprises in the final outcome, although with high-intensity matches. On June 16, France started with a 3-1 victory over Senegal at MetLife Stadium: Kylian Mbappé scored a brace and Ousmane Barcola netted the second goal. On the same day, Norway crushed Iraq 4-1 at Gillette Stadium in Boston, featuring a brace from Erling Haaland along with goals from Østigård and Thorstvedt.
In the second match, France secured their qualification with a convincing 3-0 victory over Iraq at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia: Mbappé scored in the 13th and 54th minutes, and Dembélé wrapped it up in the 66th. With that double, the Real Madrid forward reached his 15th goal in World Cups, becoming France's all-time leading scorer in World Cup history, as reported by EuropaPress.
Norway, for its part, had to come from behind against Senegal (3-2) at MetLife Stadium: Pedersen opened the scoring in the 43rd minute, Haaland doubled it in the 48th and again in the 58th with an assist from Ødegaard for the second, and Ismaila Sarr scored twice for the Africans (53 and 90+2). Haaland now has four goals in the tournament after just two matches.
Standings after Matchday 2
PosEquipoPJPtsDG| 1 | Francia | 2 | 6 | +5 |
| 2 | Noruega | 2 | 6 | +4 |
| 3 | Senegal | 2 | 0 | -3 |
| 4 | Irak | 2 | 0 | -6 |
France leads by goal difference (+5 compared to +4 for Norway), although both have six points. Senegal and Iraq, with zero points and goal differences of -3 and -6 respectively, have no chance of advancing, even as the best third-place teams: in the format of the 2026 World Cup, the eight best third-placed teams from the 12 groups qualify for the round of 32, but this spot requires at least some points.
Scenarios for Matchday 3
On Friday, June 26, at 15:00 Cuba time (19:00 UTC), all four teams will play simultaneously: Norway vs France at Gillette Stadium in Boston and Senegal vs Iraq at BMO Field in Toronto.
The match between the two qualified teams is the only one with something real at stake: the group leadership. If Norway wins, they finish first; if France wins, they top the group. In case of a tie, France retains the top spot due to their better goal difference (+5 compared to +4). The order matters because the first place avoids facing the second place from another group in the Round of 16, which could mean a more or less challenging path to the quarter-finals.
Senegal and Iraq, eliminated, play without qualifying pressure. Their players will take advantage of the match to improve individual statistics for their leagues and to finish the tournament with dignity.
The simultaneous matchday follows the standard FIFA format to prevent agreements between teams, although in this case, France and Norway no longer have any incentive to negotiate: both advance, and only the top spot is at stake.
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