Two-time champions France will lock horns against Sweden in their FIFA World Cup 2026 round of 32 match at the New York-New Jersey Stadium in New Jersey on Tuesday. The winners of this contest will face Paraguay in the round of 16 in Philadelphia on Saturday.
France has reached the final of the last two FIFA World Cups and has a 50% record in those finals. The Les Bleus won their second title in 2018 in Russia after defeating Croatia 4-2 in the final, but four years later, they went down to Argentina 4-2 via penalties in Qatar.
Sweden, on the other hand, is a one-time runner-up of the FIFA World Cup, but that was way back in 1958 when they lost to Brazil 5-2 in the final.
As for their recent best performances, Sweden reached the quarter-finals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, where they lost 2-0 to England. Sweden had failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
France vs Sweden match details
| Match | Round of 32 |
|---|---|
| Date | July 1 (in IST) |
| Kick-Off Time | 2:30 AM IST | 5 PM ET | 4 PM CT |
| Stadium | New York New Jersey Stadium, New Jersey |
| Referee | Danny Desmond Makkiele |
France vs Sweden head-to-head
France and Sweden have locked horns in 23 matches in international football. France has a superior record, having won 12 matches compared to Sweden’s six wins. Five matches have ended in draws.
Their most recent meeting came in the 2020-21 UEFA Nations League, when France defeated Sweden 4-2 in Paris, with Olivier Giroud netting a brace.
| Matches | 23 |
|---|---|
| France won | 12 |
| Sweden won | 6 |
| Draw | 5 |
| Last meeting | France won 4-2 during a UEFA Nations League match in November 2020 |
| Last FIFA World Cup meeting | None |
France vs Sweden team news
France: The biggest news is the return of defender William Saliba, who was rested for their last group-stage match against Norway due to a minor back issue.
Forward Marcus Thuram, however, is suffering from a muscular injury and will miss the match against Sweden. He has played only 1 minute in this FIFA World Cup so far, in the second group stage match against Iraq.
Sweden: Centre-back Isak Hein is a doubt for Sweden, which leaves head coach Graham Potter short in central defence. Because of this, Victor Lindelof is expected to move into central defence, and should he do, Lucas Bergvall could come into the midfield.
Without a doubt, the key player for France will be their main striker, Kylian Mbappe (4 goals so far), whereas Viktor Gyokeres, who has 1 goal and 2 assists, will look to provide attacking returns.
France vs Sweden prediction
According to the Opta supercomputer’s 25,000 pre-match simulations, France are overwhelming favourites with a 75.1% chance of winning.
Sweden, on the other hand, has only a 9.5% chance of winning. There is also a 15.4% chance that the scores are tied after 90 minutes, meaning the match could go to extra time and a penalty shootout if needed.
Where to watch France vs Sweden live on TV?
| Country/Region | Broadcaster/Television Networks | Streaming Platform |
|---|---|---|
| India & Subcontinent | Unite8 Sports (Zee), Doordarshan (Select free matches) | Zee5 |
| Australia | SBS | SBS On Demand |
| China | CMG | Migu, Xiaohongshu |
| Japan | NHK, Nippon TV, Fuji TV | DAZN |
| South Korea | JTBC, KBS | NAVER Sports, CHZZK |
| Indonesia | TVRI | MAXstream, Fola Play |
| Malaysia | RTM | Unifi TV |
| Singapore | Mediacorp | mewatch |
| New Zealand | TVNZ | TVNZ+ |
| Brazil | Grupo Globo, SBT, N Sports | CazéTV, Globoplay |
| Argentina | Telefe, TV Pública, TyC Sports | DSports |
| Colombia | Caracol Televisión, RCN, Win Sports | DSports |
| Chile | Chilevisión | DSports |
| Peru | América Televisión | DSports |
| Ecuador | Teleamazonas | DSports |
| Uruguay | Canal 5 | Antel TV, DSports |
| Central America | Tigo Sports, Albavisión | Tigo Sports App |
| United Kingdom | BBC, ITV | BBC iPlayer, ITVX |
| Germany | ARD, ZDF | Magenta Sport |
| France | M6, beIN Sports | M6+, beIN CONNECT |
| Spain | RTVE, Mediapro | RTVE Play, DAZN |
| Italy | RAI | DAZN, RaiPlay |
| Netherlands | NOS | NPO Start |
| Portugal | RTP, SIC, TVI, Sport TV | LiveModeTV |
| Belgium | VRT, RTBF | VRT MAX, RTBF Auvio |
| Croatia | HRT | HRTi |
| Poland | TVP | TVP Sport |
| United States | Fox Sports, Telemundo | Fox Sports App, Tubi (select free matches), Peacock (Spanish) |
| Canada | Bell Media (TSN / RDS) | TSN+ |
| Mexico | TelevisaUnivision, TV Azteca | ViX |
| MENA Region | beIN Sports, Alkass Sports | beIN CONNECT |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | SuperSport, New World TV | SuperSport Play |
| South Africa | SABC, SportyTV | SABC+ |
| Nigeria | SportyTV, StarTimes | StarTimes ON |
| Morocco | SNRT, beIN Sports | beIN CONNECT |
France vs Sweden: possible starting lineups
France: Maignan; Kounde, Konate, Saliba, Hernandez; Tchouameni, Rabiot; Dembele, Olise, Barcola; Mbappe.
Sweden: Zetterstrom; Holm, Lindelof, Ekdal, Gudmundsson; Bergvall, Cajuste; Kulusevski, Nanasi, Elanga; Isak.