France secured a confidence-boosting 3-1 victory over Northern Ireland in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, northern France on Monday, with Bayern Munich forward Michael Olise delivering a stunning hat-trick to send Les Bleus into the 2026 World Cup on an upbeat note. The result came just four days after France suffered a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Ivory Coast in Nantes — a loss that had raised questions about the team's readiness ahead of the tournament, which kicks off on Thursday.
Olise, 24, opened the scoring just before half-time when a deflected shot from Ousmane Dembélé fell kindly to his feet, and he doubled the lead four minutes after the interval with a crisp half-volley from his left foot. His finest moment came in the 74th minute, curling a shot from over 20 metres into the top corner to complete his first senior international hat-trick — his seventh goal in 17 appearances for France. The match was played at the Decathlon Arena – Pierre Mauroy stadium, and the two-time world champions will depart for their World Cup base in Boston on Wednesday.
Northern Ireland, who have not qualified for a major tournament since Euro 2016, showed occasional resilience. A goal from Patrick Kelly in the 64th minute briefly restored some tension, and an earlier effort had been disallowed due to a foul in the build-up. France's backline, typically reliable, was caught out by a turnover in midfield, with defender Dayot Upamecano failing to prevent the consolation goal.
The performance of captain Kylian Mbappé continued to raise eyebrows. The prolific striker failed to score in either warm-up match, missing several chances including a shot that sailed wide and efforts ruled out for offside. Mbappé, who endured a trophyless season at Real Madrid collectively — despite finishing as the league's top scorer for a second time — has yet to equal Olivier Giroud's all-time France scoring record of 57 goals. His supporters will hope the World Cup stage, historically his strongest platform, brings out his best form.
France's opening World Cup fixture is against Senegal on 16 June in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Manager Didier Deschamps, who is expected to leave his post at the end of the tournament, is likely to deploy the lineup fielded on Monday — which included the returned Dembélé, Désiré Doué, and Arsenal defender William Saliba — as his first-choice starting eleven. Olise's display will have done little to dampen speculation linking him with a move to Real Madrid, and everything to justify his place at the heart of France's World Cup ambitions.