France vs. Senegal Match Preview: Les Bleus Open Campaign | OneFootball

France opens its 2026 World Cup campaign against Senegal, a nation that usually springs surprises in this international tournament and could do so once again.

Both the French and the Senegalese share Group I with Iraq and Norway, making it one of the most interesting groups of the competition.

Below is all the key information you need to know before the France vs. Senegal game. Let’s get into it.

France vs. Senegal

Kickoff: 3:00 pm ET/12:00 pm PTMetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New JerseyWatch on FOX, Telemundo and fuboTV

France had no trouble qualifying for the World Cup, easily leading Group D of the European qualifiers and finishing 10 points ahead of its closest pursuer, Ukraine, which failed to qualify after losing in the playoffs.

The French team had five wins and one draw. Of all the World Cups played so far, France has missed only six, but since the 1998 edition in France, where it won the title, it has participated in every one, winning its second trophy at Russia 2018.

As for Senegal, the first time it appeared in the international tournament was in South Korea-Japan 2002, leaving a good taste in fans’ mouths, as it managed to reach the quarterfinals, where it lost by a narrow margin to Turkey, not before beating then-champion France in the group stage and eliminating Sweden in the round of 16.

After that, Senegal did not return to the World Cup stage until Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022, where they were eliminated in the group stage and the round of 16, respectively.

As mentioned, the only previous meeting between these two nations took place in the 2002 South Korea-Japan match, on Matchday 1 of the group stage. The inexperienced and debuting African team made headlines by beating then-defending champion France, led by Zinedine Zidane, which was eliminated at that stage to the world’s surprise. Papa Bouba Diop was the author of the only goal that would lead Senegal to an excellent World Cup.

France vs. Senegal: Team News & Predicted Lineups

The two-time world champion was among the first to announce its final squad for the tournament, led by forward Kylian Mbappé (Real Madrid), one of the survivors from the 2018 championship, noting that Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud retired from international play some time ago. Alongside Mbappé is Ousmane Dembélé, a PSG star and the most recent Ballon d’Or winner.

Among the talented players left out are Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid), Randal Kolo Muani (Tottenham Hotspur), and Kingsley Coman (Al-Nassr).

The squad also includes Malo Gusto (Chelsea), Mike Maignan (AC Milan), Jules Koundé (Barcelona), Rayan Cherki (Manchester City), Michael Olise (Bayern Munich), N’Golo Kanté (Al-Ittihad), Aurelien Tchouameni (Real Madrid), etc.

On Senegal’s side, coach Pape Thiaw left no major surprises in his squad, as it is led by veteran Sadio Mané (Al-Nassr), also including other high-level players such as Edouard Mendy (Al Ahli), Kalidou Koulibaly (Al Ahli), Pape Sarr (Tottenham), Assane Diao (Como), Nicolas Jackson (Bayern Munich), Ibrahim Mbaye (PSG), and Pathe Ciss (Rayo Vallecano).

France predicted XI vs. Senegal: Brice Samba; Lucas Digné, Lucas Hernández, Maxence Lacroix, Malo Gusto; Warren Zaïre-Emery, Rayan Cherki, N’Golo Kanté; Desiré Doué, Maghnes Akliouche, Marcus Thuram.

Senegal predicted XI vs. France: Yehvann Diouf; Antoine Mendy, Mamadou Sarr, Abdoulaye Seck; El Hadji Malick Diouf, Habib Diarra, Pathe Ciss, Lamine Camara; Ismaïla Sarr, Ibrahim Mbaye, Assane Diao.

Match prediction: France 2-2 Senegal.