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2026 FIFA World Cup
28JUN

Mbappe penalty puts France in last eight

2 min read
12:23UTC

Kylian Mbappe converted a 70th-minute penalty to beat Paraguay 1-0 in Philadelphia, his seventh goal of the tournament.

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SportDeveloping
Key takeaway

Mbappe's seventh goal, a VAR penalty, carries France into a quarter-final against Morocco.

France beat Paraguay 1-0 at Philadelphia Stadium on Saturday 4 July, Kylian Mbappe converting a 70th-minute penalty awarded after a VAR (Video Assistant Referee) review of a foul on Desire Doue 1. It was Mbappe's seventh goal of the tournament.

France had come through the round of 32 with a comfortable win over Sweden , and reached the quarter-finals without the sharpest football of their run to the 2022 final. Paraguay, who had knocked out Germany on penalties to get this far , held France until the review settled it on 70 minutes, then chased an equaliser they could not find.

Mbappe's goal points France at Morocco, the side they knocked out at the same stage four years ago. France now stand between Morocco and the reversal it has waited for since.

Deep Analysis

In plain English

VAR stands for Video Assistant Referee. It lets off-field officials review footage and tell the referee if they have missed a foul, which is how Doue's fall in the box became a penalty on review rather than waved away in real time. Mbappe then had to convert it under pressure, which he did. Neither side had created much else in the match, so one video review and one penalty kick decided who reaches the quarter-finals.

Deep Analysis
Root Causes

The penalty itself traces to personnel rather than fortune: Kylian Mbappe and Desire Doue are among Ligue 1's most-fouled dribblers this season, both quick enough in the box to draw last-ditch contact, which structurally produces more marginal penalty appeals than a build-up style based on combination passing.

Deschamps' preference for pace over central creativity narrows France's route to goal to exactly these individual carries, so when a game is closed down, as Paraguay closed this one, the team has few alternative ways through and depends on a single moment to settle it.

Sources:CNN
Mentions:France →Paraguay →Kylian Mbappé →VAR →Philadelphia →Michigan →Didier Deschamps →University of Michigan →Germany →Sweden →Morocco →Spain →World Cup →Argentina →Désiré Doué →
First Reported In

Update #34 · Morocco knock out Canada, draw France again

CNN· 5 Jul 2026
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Causes and effects
Caused by
France and Norway cruise into last 16
France beat Sweden in the round of 32 before beating Paraguay to reach the quarter-finals.
Occurred 29 Jun 2026
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This Event
Mbappe penalty puts France in last eight
France reach the last eight and now block Morocco's path to avenging the 2022 semi-final.
Led to
Morocco meet France in 2022 rematch
France's win over Paraguay fixed the other half of the first confirmed quarter-final.
Occurred 4 Jul 2026
Read story →
Different Perspectives
FIFA
FIFA
FIFA had not opened disciplinary proceedings over the Malvinas banner as of 16 July, continuing a pattern set by its fast reversal of Folarin Balogun's ban while South Africa's appeal over Themba Zwane's ban remained outstanding. The nearest tariff, a CHF 30,000 fine from 2014, remains only a precedent, not a decision.
France
France
France's tournament ended at the semi-final stage for the first time since 2010, beaten 2-0 by Spain in Arlington, and Kylian Mbappe's Golden Boot chances are reduced to Saturday's third-place game alone. The 2022 runners-up now play for bronze rather than a second straight final.
Spain
Spain
Spain reached their first World Cup final since winning the trophy in 2010, beating France 2-0 through goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro. Sixteen years after their only title, this squad returns to the same stage without the sovereignty politics attached to the other semi-final.
Downing Street (UK Government)
Downing Street (UK Government)
Downing Street said on the record that the Falkland Islanders 'are British with the right to determine their own future,' answering Argentina's vice-president and foreign minister. London rests its case on the islanders' 2013 referendum, not on the fixture, and lodged no formal protest despite the semi-final framing.
Argentina
Argentina
Vice-President Victoria Villarruel called England 'the usurping pirates' before kickoff; midfielder Leandro Paredes said after the 2-1 win that the Falklands 'will always be Argentine'. Argentina's 1994 constitution commits every office-holder to press the Malvinas claim, so a World Cup semi-final was never going to pass without it.
Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland reached their first World Cup quarter-final since 1954 and led Argentina before Breel Embolo's second yellow card left them a man down for the last half-hour. They expect the run to raise expectations for the next cycle rather than close a chapter.