Overview
France enters the 2026 World Cup as the number one team in the FIFA rankings and is one of the top candidates for the championship. Les Bleus are aiming for a special milestone when they have the opportunity to become the third team in history to reach three consecutive World Cup finals, after West Germany and Brazil.
20 years after the first world championship, France won the 2018 World Cup before losing to Argentina on penalties in the dramatic final in Qatar in 2022. The 2026 World Cup will also mark the final tournament of coach Didier Deschamps as captain of the national team.
After reaching the EURO 2024 semi-finals and winning third place in the UEFA Nations League, France continues to show their strength in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The blue team is unbeaten with 5 wins and 1 draw, thereby leading the group with the participation of Ukraine, Iceland and Azerbaijan.
Les Bleus's form in the past year has also been very impressive. They have won 8 of the last 9 matches, drawn the remaining match and scored at least 2 goals in all 9 matches. In the training camp in March, France successively defeated Brazil 2-1 and Colombia 3-1.
Head-to-head history is also on Deschamps' team's side as they are unbeaten in three previous encounters with Ivory Coast, with two wins and one draw. Team spirit is currently very high as the goal of winning the World Cup for the third time is ahead.
Meanwhile, Ivory Coast returned to the World Cup stage after missing the last two tournaments in 2018 and 2022. The African representative won a convincing ticket with a record of 8 wins and 2 draws after 10 qualifying matches, scoring 25 goals and not conceding a goal.
The team nicknamed "The Elephants" closed the qualifying campaign with heavy victories 7-0 against Seychelles and 3-0 against Kenya. After that, they advanced to the CAN Cup quarter-finals at home but stopped before Egypt after a 2-3 defeat.
However, coach Emerse Fae's team quickly regained confidence with two consecutive friendly victories against South Korea and Scotland without conceding a goal. Since taking over the national team more than two years ago, Fae has helped Ivory Coast win 21 out of 31 matches in all competitions.
Currently ranked 34th in the world, Ivory Coast considers the confrontation with France as a quality test before entering Group E of the 2026 World Cup, where they will face Germany, Ecuador and Curacao.
Personnel situation
The French team is likely to be without William Saliba in the friendly match with Ivory Coast. The Arsenal center-back relapsed from a back injury after the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain last weekend and is facing the risk of missing the 2026 World Cup.
Deschamps is also considering rotating the squad as many PSG players have just gone through a long journey in the Champions League. Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue, Bradley Barcola, Warren Zaire-Emery and Lucas Hernandez may all be given rest or only play for a limited time.
On the Ivory Coast side, Emerse Fae was forced to adjust the list when defender Clement Akpa was injured and eliminated from the World Cup squad. Christopher Operi was called up to replace him on the left wing.
Expected lineup:
France: Maignan, Kounde, Konate, Upamecano, Digne, Kante, Tchouameni, Olise, Cherki, Mbappe, Thuram.
Ivory Coast: Y. Fofana, Doue, Kossounou, Diomande, Konan, Sangare, Kessie, S. Fofana, Pepe, Wahi, Diomande.
The match between France and Ivory Coast takes place at 2:10 am on June 5 (Vietnam time).
