France Beat Norway to Top Group I as Ousmane Dembélé’s Hat-Trick Secures Perfect Group Stage Record

France Beat Norway to Top Group I as Ousmane Dembélé’s Hat-Trick Secures Perfect Group Stage Record

The match began with France asserting their dominance immediately, and Dembélé opened the scoring in the 7th minute with a superb finish after receiving a pass from Kylian Mbappé, who was making his 100th appearance for the French national team. The Paris Saint-Germain superstar delivered a perfectly weighted ball from the opposite side of the pitch, allowing Dembélé to cut inside and unleash a powerful strike past the Norwegian goalkeeper.

The goal set the tone for what would be a memorable evening for the French forward, who has been in sensational form throughout the tournament. Dembélé doubled his tally in the 20th minute, expertly finding the back of the net once again to give Les Bleus a commanding 2-0 lead, much to the delight of the French supporters packed inside Gillette Stadium.

However, Norway refused to be silenced and pulled one back just two minutes later in the 22nd minute, when Thelo Aasgaard dropped his shoulder to create space and fired past Mike Maignan to make it 2-1. The goal briefly gave the Norwegian fans hope that their team could mount a comeback and challenge the world champions.

Any hopes of a Norwegian revival were short-lived, as Dembélé completed his hat-trick in the 32nd minute, curling a delightful left-footed finish into the far corner to restore France's two-goal cushion at 3-1. This performance marked a historic achievement for the French forward, as his three goals came in just 25 minutes, making him the first player to score a first-half hat-trick at the World Cup since Russia forward Oleg Salenko scored three of his five goals in the opening 45 minutes against Cameroon at the 1994 World Cup in the United States.

Dembélé, who won the Ballon d'Or as Europe's top player in 2025, left the game in the 65th minute to a standing ovation from the French supporters, having done enough to secure his place in the history books. Norway coach Stale Solbakken made the decision to rest star striker Erling Haaland for the match, making 10 changes to his starting lineup, a decision that proved costly as Norway struggled to contain the relentless French attack without their talismanic forward. The Norwegian attack lacked the cutting edge that Haaland provides, and they were unable to trouble Maignan despite their brief moment of hope through Aasgaard's goal.

France added a fourth goal in second-half injury time when substitute Désiré Doué scored with a clinical finish to complete the 4-1 rout, putting the finishing touches on a dominant display. The victory gives France a perfect nine points from three matches, securing top spot in Group I with the best record of any team in the tournament so far. Norway finish second on six points and will also advance to the Round of 32, where they will face a tougher challenge against the second-placed team from Group E, Ivory Coast, who secured their place in the knockout rounds for the first time in their history.