France vs Senegal FIFA World Cup 2026 Preview: Everything you need to know

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France vs Senegal kicks off on 16 Jun 2026 at 15:00 EST and 19:00 GMT.

France vs Senegal: An ironic reunion

2022 runners-up France opens up its 2026 World Cup campaign on June 16th against Senegal. It's a rematch of that iconic meeting in 2002, where The Lions of Teranga roared to a surprise win, shocking the world by beating the then-defending champions. This time around, Les Bleus are expected to be there and thereabouts once again, with gold and silver medals in the last two editions.

Who is France's coach & key players?

There are stars everywhere you look in this French group. Depth is honestly never an issue for the 1998 and 2018 champions.

Only Olivier Giroud (57) has scored more than Kylian Mbappe's 56 goals for France, with the Real Madrid forward expected to captain his country despite recent struggles with a thigh injury. As we all know, the irrepressible Mbappe scored a hat-trick in the 2022 final against Argentina. Now might be the time for PSG's Ousmane Dembele to notch his first goal in this tournament. The ex-Barca man has featured at two World Cups. Fresh off winning the Champions League and scoring 35 times in the campaign, Dembele will be joined by clubmates Desire Doué and Bradley Barcola, Bayern's Michael Olise and Man City's Rayan Cherki in a fearsome-looking attack. Arsenal's William Saliba is expected to marshal a talented back four. Such is the ridiculous depth in Didier Deschamps' squad that there's no space for Real Madrid schemer Eduardo Camavinga in the group.

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Who is Senegal's coach & key players?

Saudi-based trio Sadio Mane, Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy are the experienced spine of a solid Senegal side. Ex-Liverpool attacker Mane, arguably the most iconic player in the nation's history, will be their talisman again. Mendy will wear the gloves, and his former Chelsea teammate Koulibaly will marshal the back four. Also look out for Tottenham midfielder Pape Sarr and Bayern Munich striker Nicolas Jackson; he's been on loan there from Chelsea.

Current coach Pape Thiaw took over from long-serving manager Aliou Cissé in December 2024 and guided the team to 2025 Africa Cup of Nations glory, although the Lions of Teranga forfeited the game due to a walk-off protest, officially awarding Morocco a 3-0 default victory.

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France's 26-man World Cup squad

Goalkeepers: Mike Maignan (AC Milan), Robin Risser (Lens), Brice Samba (Rennes).

Defenders: Lucas Digne (Aston Villa), Malo Gusto (Chelsea), Lucas Hernandez (Paris St-Germain), Theo Hernandez (Al Hilal), Ibrahima Konate (Liverpool), Maxence Lacroix (Crystal Palace), Jules Kounde (Barcelona), William Saliba (Arsenal), Dayot Upamecano (Bayern Munich).

Midfielders: N'Golo Kante (Fenerbahce), Manu Kone (Roma), Adrien Rabiot (AC Milan), Aurelien Tchouameni (Real Madrid), Warren Zaire-Emery (Paris St-Germain).

Forwards: Maghnes Akliouche (Monaco), Bradley Barcola (Paris St-Germain), Rayan Cherki (Man City), Ousmane Dembele (Paris St-Germain), Desire Doue (Paris St-Germain), Michael Olise (Bayern Munich), Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid), Jean-Philippe Mateta (Crystal Palace), Marcus Thuram (Inter Milan).

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France's Road to the World Cup

France sailed through their European qualification campaign, securing a direct ticket by topping UEFA Group D in late 2025.

Senegal's 26-man World Cup squad

Goalkeepers: Edouard Mendy (Al-Ahli), Yehvann Diouf (Nice), Mory Diaw (Le Havre).

Defenders: Krepin Diatta (Monaco), Antoine Mendy (Nice), Abdoulaye Seck (Maccabi Haifa), Kalidou Koulibaly (Al-Hilal), Moussa Niakhate (Lyon), Mamadou Sarr (Chelsea), El-Hadji Malick Diouf (West Ham United), Ismail Jakobs (Galatasaray).

Midfielders: Idrissa Gueye (Everton), Habib Diarra (Sunderland), Pape Matar Sarr (Tottenham), Pape Gueye (Villarreal), Lamine Camara (Monaco), Pathe Ciss (Rayo Vallecano), Bara Ndiaye (Bayern Munich).

Forwards: Sadio Mane (Al-Nassr), Bamba Dieng (Lorient), Iliman Ndiaye (Everton), Nicolas Jackson (Bayern Munich), Assane Diao (Como), Ibrahim Mbaye (Paris St-Germain), Cherif Ndiaye (Samsunspor), Ismaila Sarr (Crystal Palace).

Senegal's road to the World Cup

Senegal finished undefeated at the top of Group B to guarantee their direct spot in the 2026 World Cup. Facing competition from DR Congo, Senegal conceded just three times in 10 matches.

Team news & squads

France vs Senegal Probable lineups

France

FRA

Formation

Senegal

SEN

Senegal

SEN

Manager

• D. Deschamps

France manager Didier Deschamps has no confirmed probable lineup available for this fixture, and no injuries or suspensions have been listed in the current data. Updates will be added closer to kick-off as the squad picture becomes clearer.

Senegal head coach Pape Thiaw is similarly without confirmed team news at this stage. No injuries, suspensions, or projected XI data has been provided. Check back for the latest information as the match approaches.

Form

France have won four of their last five matches. Their most recent outing was a 3-1 victory over Northern Ireland on June 8, with Olise the standout performer. Before that came a 2-1 defeat to Ivory Coast on June 4, their only loss in the run. They also beat Colombia 3-1 and Brazil 2-1 in consecutive friendlies in March. Across the five matches, France scored 10 goals and conceded five.

Senegal have won three of their last five. Their most recent result was a 3-2 defeat to the United States on May 31. Before that, they beat Gambia 3-1 and Peru 2-0 in March. Their other two defeats came in the Africa Cup of Nations, including a 3-0 loss to Morocco in January. Senegal scored nine goals and conceded seven across those five outings.

Head-to-Head Record

FRA

Last match

SEN

0

Wins

0

Draws

1

Win

• France

  0

  -

  1

  Senegal

0

Goals scored

1

Games over 2.5 goals

0/1

Both teams scored

0/1

These two sides have met once in the dataset provided. At the 2002 World Cup on May 31, Senegal beat France 1-0 in what stands as one of the tournament's most famous upsets. That result, in the group stage, contributed to France's early exit from a tournament they entered as defending champions.

Standings

In Group I, France enter the match in first place, while Senegal are currently fourth.