Kylian Mbappe inspires France win to boost Golden Boot bid

Kylian Mbappe drew level with Lionel Messi at the top of the 2026 World Cup goalscoring charts as France swept aside Sweden 3-0 to seal their place in the last 16 with an exhilarating performance in New Jersey.

Mbappe’s brace took his tally for the tournament to six, matching the Argentinian superstar, while Bradley Barcola also got on the scoresheet on a night that underlined their status as favourites to clinch their third World Cup crown.

But for some errant finishing and a strong performance from Swedish goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom, France might have more than doubled their margin of victory as they denied Graham Potter’s men any hope of causing an upset.

Ultimately, it was the brilliance of Mbappe that provided the most memorable aspects of a dazzling display from Didier Deschamps’ men, who will now progress to meet surprise package Paraguay in Philadelphia.

Having scraped through to the knockout stages after finishing third in Group F, Sweden clung on through most of a torrid first half in which a combination of fine saves and the woodwork saved their blushes.

Mbappe thought he had opened the scoring just past the quarter-hour mark when he fired home only to be pulled back for the most marginal of offsides, Adrien Rabiot forced a fine save from a tight angle, then Mbappe drove a shot against the post that eventually rebounded into the keeper’s arms.

A stunning overhead effort from Michael Olise struck the base of the post and Ousmane Dembele lashed the follow-up wide, before Mbappe finally broke the deadlock with a beautiful curling finish on the stroke of half-time.

Mbappe ran straight to celebrate with Deschamps, who returned to prepare his side for their first game in the knockout stages after missing