Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe scored a brace as two-time champions France beat Senegal 3-1 in their group I opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at the New York New Jersey Stadium on Tuesday night. 

It was the Senegalese who started the match on the front foot and almost took the lead when Nicolas Jackson’s shot struck the goalpost, which ended up going off goalkeeper Mike Maignan’s leg for the safety of a corner kick.

France looked rejuvenated on resumption of the second half and finally broke the deadlock in the 66th minute when Mbappe directed an assist by Michael Olise past goalkeeper Edouard Mendy. 

Les Bleus doubled their lead in the 82nd minute after Bradley Barcola chipped a through pass by Adrien Rabiot over Mendy with his first touch of the match. 

Substitute Ibrahim Mbaye pulled one back for Senegal with a cheeky play in the fifth minute of added time. 

However, Mbappe responded less than 60 seconds later with a flying shot from yards out into the roof of the net to seal the victory for the 2022 finalists.

The brace took Mbappe’s World Cup goal tally to 14 goals, placing him third on the all-time top-scorer list. He is now two goals away from matching the 16-goal record currently held by Germany’s Miroslav Klose.