Kylian Mbappe marked his 100th appearance for France by scoring twice as the World Cup favourites defeated Iraq 3-0 in a match disrupted by severe weather in Philadelphia.
The France captain reached another milestone in a glittering international career as his goals helped Les Bleus secure a second consecutive victory at the tournament and book their place in the knockout stages.
The encounter at Lincoln Financial Field was delayed for more than two hours after a powerful storm forced thousands of spectators to seek shelter during half-time.
Mbappe opened the scoring after 14 minutes before adding his second shortly after the restart. Ousmane Dembele, last year’s Ballon d’Or winner, completed the victory as France maintained their perfect start in Group I.
The weather interruption created unusual scenes inside the 68,000-capacity stadium as supporters were instructed to leave exposed seating areas.
“Exit the open seating area and seek shelter in covered areas,” stadium officials announced after torrential rain and lightning moved across Philadelphia.
Strict weather safety regulations in the United States require sporting events to be suspended when dangerous storms are detected nearby, making it the first World Cup fixture at the tournament to be halted because of adverse weather.
Mbappe’s latest double followed his two goals against Senegal in France’s opening match, taking his tally to 60 goals in 100 appearances for the national team.
The 27-year-old Real Madrid forward has now scored 16 World Cup goals in just 16 appearances, drawing level with Germany’s Miroslav Klose and moving within two goals of Lionel Messi’s World Cup record tally of 18.
France took control after Iraq gifted the visitors a second goal shortly after the restart. Defender Zaid Tahseen misplaced a pass intended for goalkeeper Basil, allowing Dembele to set up Mbappe for a simple finish.
Michael Olise later struck the crossbar before providing the assist for Dembele, who fired home France’s third goal on 66 minutes.
France coach Didier Deschamps made three changes to his starting line-up, with Bradley Barcola, Manu Kone and Lucas Digne all brought into the side.
Iraq suffered an additional setback when captain Aymen Hussein was forced off injured after 26 minutes.
The defeat leaves Graham Arnold’s side facing early elimination after also losing 4-1 to Norway in their opening match. Iraq have now lost all five matches across their two World Cup appearances.
France, meanwhile, will face Norway next in Boston as they continue their pursuit of a third World Cup title, with Mbappe emerging as one of the leading contenders for the tournament’s Golden Boot.
