France at World Cup 2022: History, Schedule & Results

The defending champions will be looking to have yet another successful tournament

Les Bleus have won the world cup on 2 occasions. They registered their first win in 1998 when they hosted the cup and defeated Brazil 3-0 in the final and another in 2018 at Russia.

France will be making its 16th appearance in the upcoming World Cup which is all set to kick off on November 21.

France was among the four teams with Argentina, Mexico, and Chile that participated in the first World Cup campaign in 1930. In the first World Cup game, Les Bleus registered a 4-1 victory over Mexico at the Estadio Pocitos in Uruguay. 

French forward Lucien Laurent scored the first goal in World Cup History. Kick-starting the inaugural World Cup campaign with a resilient win, France suffered a huge blow when they lost to eventual group winners Argentina.

France earned qualification for the second edition of the quadrennial international tournament by beating Luxembourg 6-1 in Luxembourg City. In the first round of that campaign, they faced Austria. Italian dictator Benito Mussolini utilized the second edition of the World Cup Campaign as a propaganda tool to promote fascism. In that group stage match against Austria, France lost 2-3 following extra-time goals from Josef Bican and Anton Schall. 

France were the host of the third edition of the FIFA World Cup in 1938.

France qualified automatically for being the host country for the third FIFA World Cup campaign. French striker Émile Veinante created history by scoring the fastest goal in the tournament in the opening minute of the game against Belgium. Despite the dream start, France was beaten by defending champions Italy losing 1-3 in the quarterfinals. Italy successfully defended their title defeating Hungary 4-2 in the finals.

In 1958, Les Bleus finished third place in the sixth edition of the FIFA World Cup. Pelé's hat trick along with individuals from Vavá & Didi in the Semifinals ended the hope for France to qualify for the finals in Råsunda Stadium, Solna. 

France's World Cup history

In the 1982 World cup, the French Right back won the best young player of the tournament, and his country finished in Fourth place. West-german keeper Harald Schumacher made a brutal foul on French defender Pattrick Battiston was one of the notable incidents of that campaign.

The reigning Europe Champions France started their 1986 FIFA world cup with a draw against the Soviet Union. Despite making a great performance overall in the group stage, group topper Soviet Union qualifies for the next round on goal difference. France finished in third place.

The sixteenth edition of the World Cup in 1998 was the longest World Cup tournament ever held, spanning 32 days. It was a dream come true for the host country as they finally clinched the World Cup Title for the first time defeating Brazil 3-0 and becoming the seventh nation to win the World Cup. French keeper Fabien Allain Berthez bags the Best Goalkeeper award. Zinedine Zidane (Zizou) was named the FIFA World Player of the Year in 1998 for scoring a brace in the finals.

Once again, France were close to winning the World Cup title again in 2006. Italy won the tournament and clinched the fourth World Cup Title defeating France 5-3 in the penalty shootout. This edition of the world cup was recorded as one of the most-watched programs in television history. Zinedine Zidane was awarded the best player of the year.

Defending champions

The defending champions are heading into the 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup to defend their title. Didier Deschamp's France earned their qualification after winning the UEFA Nations Group D. 

With a star-studded squad, France is having an undefeated run winning five and drawing 3 matches in their qualifying campaign.

Also Read: France announces 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup

 France will be facing Australia, Denmark & Tunisia in Group D. 

Finally, Didier Deschamp has picked up the 26th men's squad for the upcoming World Cup. Kylian Mbappe, Hugo Lloris, Raphael Varane, and Karima Benzema are the stars who will shine in the France Squad.

France's fixture and match timings

France vs Australia | Group D| 23 Nov | 12:30 AM IST, 8 PM CET, 7 PM/2 PM GMT, EST.

France vs Denmark| Group D| 26 Nov | 9:30 PM IST, 5 PM CET, 4 PM /11 AM GMT, EST 

Tunisia vs France|Group D|30 Nov | 8:30 PM IST, 4 PM CET, 3 PM / 10 AM GMT, EST