A penalty from captain Kylian Mbappe in the 70th minute proved the difference as France defeated Paraguay 1-0 in the FIFA World Cup round of 16 in Philadelphia.
The 2018 World Cup winner was left frustrated for a long time until Desire Doue was brought down in the penalty area by Diego Gomez, after which VAR intervened and awarded France a penalty.
Didier Deschamps’ team will then take on Morocco in the quarter-finals in Boston on July 9. The Atlas Lions sealed progress earlier in the day after a 3-0 win over Canada in Houston.
Mbappé and France want to become the first team to play three consecutive World Cup finals since Brazil at the turn of the century.
Morocco wants to reach the semi-finals for the second edition in a row.
Published on July 5, 2026
