World Cup: Dembele's hat-trick powers France past Norway for group lead

France secured top spot in Group H of the 2026 World Cup with a commanding 4-1 victory over Norway, extending their winning streak to three matches. The highly anticipated clash between Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland did not materialize as Norway, having already secured qualification, benched their key players, including Haaland and Martin Odegaard.

Instead, the spotlight shone brightly on French forward Ousmane Dembele, who delivered a stunning performance. He scored a rapid-fire hat-trick within the first 32 minutes of the match, achieving the second-fastest hat-trick in World Cup history. Dembele opened the scoring in the seventh minute with a shot through two defenders, followed by a long-range strike from a Mbappe assist in the 20th minute. He completed his treble just minutes later.

Norway managed a brief response when Thelo Aasgaard scored in the 19th minute, but they were unable to contain France's relentless attack. Mbappe, despite not scoring himself, contributed significantly with two assists. Desire Doue added a fourth goal for France in injury time.

With this win, France finished Group H with a perfect record. Norway, despite the loss, secured second place and will face Ivory Coast in the knockout stage. In another match, Senegal defeated Iraq 5-0, keeping their hopes alive to advance as one of the best third-placed teams.