FIFA World Cup: France becomes first team to reach Round of 16

Defending champion France on Saturday (November 26) became the first team to qualify for the knockouts (Round of 16) of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar.

France defeated Denmark 2-1 in a Group D match in Doha. This was the second straight win for Les Bleus.

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Earlier, France had beaten Australia 4-1. Danes drew 0-0 with Tunisia.

Australia defeated Tunisia 1-0 earlier Saturday.

At the 974 Stadium, Kylian Mbappe scored twice (61st minute and 86th) to give France a victory. All three goals in the match came in the second half. Andreas Christensen scored for Denmark in the 68th minute.

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Mbappe has now scored three goals in two matches. He is the joint top goalscorer in the tournament in Qatar with Ecuador’s Enner Valencia.

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Mbappe and Argentina’s Lionel Messi now have an equal number of World Cup goals – seven.

In Russia, four years ago, Mbappe scored four goals when France won the World Cup, including one in the final. He now has 31 goals for France, moving him one ahead of Just Fontaine the all-time leading scorer at a single World Cup with 13 goals at the 1958 tournament.