France Lead Group I But the Hard Work Starts Now

France have been the dominant force in Group I, banking nine points from three matches and building a goal difference of plus-eight that no rival has come close to matching. Norway trail in second on six points, while Senegal sit third with three, and Iraq are yet to get off the mark. On paper, the group phase has gone about as well as it could for the French.

Yet the table is now secondary. France's next challenge arrives not in the group but in the knockout rounds — a Round of 32 fixture against Sweden on Tuesday evening at 9:00 PM. It is a straight shootout. Win and they advance; lose and the campaign is over, regardless of how commanding their group form looked.

Sweden represent a genuine threat simply by virtue of reaching this stage. France will carry the weight of expectation as group leaders, but knockout football has a habit of levelling the playing field quickly. The comfort of three group wins counts for nothing once the referee blows the opening whistle on Tuesday.

Norway's presence just six points off the pace is also a reminder that France's group dominance was not without competition. That competitive edge could prove useful conditioning heading into a knockout environment where fine margins decide everything.

For France, the qualification picture is now binary. The path forward runs exclusively through Tuesday's tie. Get past Sweden and they move deeper into the competition; stumble, and the group-topping performance becomes a footnote. This is where the real test begins.