France have been on a skyward trajectory this summer and are playing with a joie de vivre that suggests they might saunter to a third World Cup title. France’s odds to win the World Cup shortened even further after their superb 3-0 success over Sweden in the Round of 32. Can anyone stop the favourites’ charge for silverware?

Les Bleus have a squad heavily sprinkled with stardust, though that quality is now complemented by team spirit and unity, things that haven’t always existed in previous camps. Indeed, France look like a complete football team in every sense, and motivated to lay to rest the ghosts of Qatar, they’ve been backed by most to prevail.

Ahead of their Round of 16 meeting with Paraguay, we take a look at France’s group stage performances, their possible route to the final, their chances of winning the tournament outright, as well as some betting angles and World Cup betting tips to consider.

France’s Group Stage report card

Group I results:

• France 3-1 Senegal (June 16, MetLife Stadium)

• France 3-0 Iraq (June 22, Lincoln Financial Field)

• France 4-1 Norway (June 26, Gillette Stadium)

France took 45 minutes to warm up at the World Cup. They lodged just a single shot in a sleepy first half against Senegal on matchday one, before they roused themselves after the interval.

Eight shots on target, four big chances and an xG of 1.75 were manufactured in the second half, with goals from Kylian Mbappe (twice) and Bradley Barcola proving enough to topple a spirited Senegalese outfit.

Mbappe’s second put him ahead of Olivier Giroud as France’s all-time top scorer and the Real Madrid superstar was at it again on matchday two, plundering an excellent brace in another comfortable Les Bleus win over Iraq (3-0), with Ousmane Dembele also getting in on the act.

PSG’s Dembele took on the mantle as chief tormentor against a shuffled Norway (4-1) side shorn of the rested Erling Haaland on matchday three. The winger notched a first-half hattrick inside 32 minutes as France flowed forward with razor-sharp incision.

France were one of only three teams to hit double-figure goals in the group phase alongside Germany and the Netherlands, who have both been eliminated since.

In the Round of 32, France blitzed Sweden (3-0), with an insatiable Mbappe at the double again. Didier Deschamps, who missed the final group game on compassionate grounds, was back in the dugout to witness his team’s slick performance against the Swedes. France registered 12 shots on target and an xG of 3.24 in their dominant display versus the Scandinavians in New Jersey.

France’s potential path to the final of FIFA World Cup 2026

• Round of 16: Paraguay (July 4, Philadelphia)

• Quarter Finals: Canada or Morocco (July 9, Foxborough)

• Semi Finals: Portugal, Croatia, Spain, Austria, USA or Belgium (July 14, Arlington)

France made light work of Sweden in their first foray into the knockout rounds of World Cup 2026, to set up a meeting with Germany’s surprise conquerors, Paraguay, in the Round of 16 at Lincoln Financial Field.

Some heroic rearguard action allowed Paraguay to squeeze past the Germans on penalty kicks, though they did concede 21 shots across 120 minutes before the shootout decider. If the South Americans allow France to clock 20+ attempts, they won’t leave Philly unscathed. It’s no surprise to see France listed as short as 1/7 to beat Paraguay with LiveScoreBet.

In the quarter-finals, one of Canada or Morocco, two nations with strong French links, will await in Foxborough, though France would expect to triumph against either possible foe. Les Bleus got the better of the Atlas Lions (2-0) in the semi-finals of the last World Cup in Qatar, while they were held to a 0-0 draw by Canada in an international friendly in 2024.

Potential semi-final opponents include Portugal, Croatia, Spain, Austria, the USA or Belgium, and from that list, France would be keen to avoid a test against La Roja, who have been a bit of a bogey side in recent years.

Spain beat France in a thrilling 2025 Nations League Final (5-4) and in the semi-finals of Euro 2024 before that (2-1). In fact, the Spaniards have won seven, drawn one and lost only two of their last ten meetings with France overall since 2006.

France’s Outright odds to win the World Cup

France remain firmly fixed as favourites in LiveScoreBet’s latest 2026 World Cup outright winner markets and Les Bleus continue to attract plenty of interest as their momentum builds.

If Mbappe, Dembele, Olise, Barcola, Doue and co cut through Paraguay in the Round of 16, those prices are likely to be slashed even further, so this could be a decent time to get on board.

Behind France, Lionel Messi’s Argentina are second-favourites in the outright stakes at 4/1. The South Americans, who are defending champions, are on the opposite side of the draw to France and could well set up a rematch of the Qatar 22 Final in this summer’s edition of the World Cup.

England and Spain share odds of 8/1 for the same market, while Brazil at 11/1 and Portugal at 14/1, followed next, with Colombia, co-hosts the USA and Mexico, as well as Morocco all 28/1 shots for World Cup glory.

At present, France have a 38.5% probability of lifting the World Cup for the second time in three attempts, with some pundits even predicting that Les Bleus might win it without breaking a sweat.

Back France to win the World Cup at 37/20 with LiveScoreBet

France World Cup predictions: how far will they go?

France have been the World Cup’s most devastating attacking and ominously for their rivals, they seem to be improving with each passing game.

Les Bleus racked up 25 shots and 12 shots on target in their 3-0 victory over Sweden in the Round of 32, their highest figures in a single sitting at the World Cup so far.

This France team is playing and working together without ego, and the result of that has been a brand of slick, unselfish football, with combination play and eager running off the ball tearing opposing teams to shreds.

Six-goal Kylian Mbappe still plays the lead role, however, any member of his supporting cast, which includes Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise et al, can step up to deliver match-changing moments at any time. Compare that to Messi and compatriots at second-favourites Argentina and the contrast is stark.

France have scored 3+ times in 100% of their World Cup assignments so far and they have the talent to maintain that average right through to the end of the tournament. You can back Les Bleus to reach the final at 41/50, however, if you’re already looking at those markets, backing them to win the World Cup outright makes much more sense.

Back France to win the 2026 World Cup with LiveScoreBet.

World Cup bet builder tips for France

Below, we’ve included some extra betting advice to take to the bet builder markets for France’s remaining World Cup fixtures:

Player shots on target

Bettors have so many options to play with here. Mbappe, who has been averaging 5.42 shots and 3.35 shots on target per 90 minutes, is the obvious candidate, however Dembele (1.58) is an alternative that should offer better value.

Similarly, Michael Olise, who has yet to score this summer, has been averaging 1.48 shots on target p/90 for France and can be relied upon to threaten. Aside from the obvious, Adrien Rabiot is good for a pop from distance. The 31-year-old had two shots against Sweden in the Round of 32, one of which hit the target.

Player fouls

Adrien Rabiot has already committed seven fouls in three appearances for France at the 2026 World Cup, though four of those were conceded in one outing against Sweden in the Round of 32.

His foil in midfield, Aurelien Tchouameni meanwhile, has given away four free kicks in total, a haul matched by defender Dayot Upamecano, and somewhat surprisingly, skipper Kylian Mbappe.

Approach corners markets with caution

If you’re looking at corner market angles, just remember that France’s style and gameplan doesn’t really involve searching for set pieces to exploit. They did win nine corners against Sweden in the Round of 32, though that high tally was a little anomalous.

France won six, four and five corners against Senegal (6-4), Iraq (4-2) and Norway (5-4) in the group stage and didn’t clear a -3.0 corner handicap in any of those three fixtures.