Costa de Marfil surprises France with 2-1 friendly victory ahead of World Cup

France experienced a disappointing farewell match on home soil ahead of the 2026 World Cup, falling 2-1 to Costa de Marfil in Nantes.

The match began positively for the French team, 'les bleus,' with coach Didier Deschamps receiving a standing ovation in the seventh minute. France opened the scoring just before halftime, with Rayan Cherki finding the net.

However, France made numerous changes at the interval, including substituting Kylian Mbappé, who watched from the bench as Guéla Doué quickly equalized for Costa de Marfil in the 53rd minute. Despite Maignan being the only French player to play the entire match, the team conceded a second goal.

Amad Diallo scored the decisive goal for Costa de Marfil in the 84th minute, securing a victory that highlighted defensive lapses for the French squad. This result marks a somber note for the 2018 World Cup champions and 2022 finalists.

France's final send-off match before traveling to North America for the Copa America will be against Northern Ireland on Monday, June 8. For Costa de Marfil, this was their sole FIFA international window fixture before the global tournament, where they are grouped with Ecuador, Germany, and Curazao. Their opening match is scheduled for June 14 against Ecuador.