France vs Paraguay Live Updates: Les Bleus And Paraguay Get World Cup Round Of 16 Clash Underway

William Saliba holds up the ball near the touchline and plays his way out of a tight situation brilliantly to launch an attack as Jules Koundé surges into space down the right. Ousmane Dembélé's cross is eventually cleared, but it serves as an early warning for Paraguay.

France 0 - 0 Paraguay

We're underway at the Philadelphia Stadium! Michael Olise gets the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 clash underway as France launch it deep into the Paraguay half so they can gain ground and apply pressure from the subsequent throw-in. 

France 0 - 0 Paraguay

The stage is set at the Philadelphia Stadium as France and Paraguay complete the pre-match formalities. Les Bleus are sporting their traditional royal blue shirts with white trim, while Paraguay are in their iconic red-and-white striped kit.

Kylian Mbappé (France): The France captain enters the Round of 16 in red-hot form and is closing in on Lionel Messi's all-time FIFA World Cup goals record. Another goal against Paraguay would take him one step closer to the Argentine great.

Julio Enciso (Paraguay): Paraguay's attacking talisman has enjoyed an impressive tournament, registering one goal and two assists in four appearances. His creativity and pace will be crucial if the South Americans are to spring another upset.

France have enjoyed the upper hand in this fixture, winning three of their five previous meetings with Paraguay, while the remaining two matches ended in draws. Paraguay are still searching for their first victory over Les Bleus.

• Matches Played: 5
• France wins: 3
• Paraguay wins: 0
• Draws: 2

France have been one of the standout teams at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, cruising through the tournament with a perfect record so far. Les Bleus opened their campaign with a convincing 3-1 victory over Senegal before easing past Iraq 3-0. They then wrapped up the group stage in emphatic fashion with a commanding 4-1 win over Norway.

The two-time world champions carried that momentum into the Round of 32, where they took on Sweden. Didier Deschamps' side produced another dominant display, with captain Kylian Mbappé scoring twice and Bradley Barcola adding the third in a comfortable 3-0 victory to seal France's place in the Round of 16.

Paraguay endured a difficult start to their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign, suffering a heavy 4-1 defeat to co-hosts USA in their opening match. La Albirroja responded impressively by edging past Türkiye 1-0 before playing out a goalless draw against Australia in their final group fixture.

Their tally of one win, one draw and one defeat was enough to see them qualify for the Round of 32 as one of the eight best third-placed teams across the 12 groups. There Paraguay produced one of the biggest shocks in FIFA World Cup history. Gustavo Alfaro's men stunned four-time champions Germany after holding the European giants to a 1-1 draw over 120 minutes. 

France make one change to the side that beat Sweden 3-0 in the Round of 32, with Aurélien Tchouaméni dropping to the bench after reportedly picking up an injury in training. Manu Koné comes into Didier Deschamps' starting XI in the only alteration.

Paraguay, meanwhile, make three changes following their penalty shootout victory over Germany. Omar Alderete, Gustavo Velázquez and Diego Gómez replace Damián Bobadilla, Gabriel Ávalos and José Canale in Gustavo Alfaro's lineup.

France XI: Mike Maignan; Lucas Digne, William Saliba, Dayot Upamecano, Jules Koundé; Adrien Rabiot, Manu Koné; Bradley Barcola, Michael Olise, Ousmane Dembélé; Kylian Mbappé.

Substitutes: Brice Samba, Malo Gusto, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Marcus Thuram, N'Golo Kanté, Ibrahima Konaté, Warren Zaïre-Emery, Theo Hernández, Désiré Doué, Lucas Hernández, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Robin Risser, Rayan Cherki, Maghnes Akliouche, Maxence Lacroix.

Paraguay XI: Orlando Gill; Omar Alderete, Gustavo Gómez, Gustavo Velázquez, Junior Alonso, Robert Rojas Cáceres; Miguel Almirón, Matías Galarza, Andrés Cubas, Diego Gómez; Julio Enciso.

Substitutes: Roberto Fernández, Fabián Balbuena, Ramón Sosa, Antonio Sanabria, Mauricio, José Canale, Damián Bobadilla, Ángel Romero, Arce, Ojeda, Gabriel Ávalos, Olveira, Caballero, Pitta, Maidana.

Welcome to our live coverage of France vs Paraguay in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16. A place in the quarter-finals is at stake as tournament favourites France take on giant-killers Paraguay, who stunned Germany in the previous round.

Stay with us for live score updates, confirmed line-ups, goals and all the key moments as Didier Deschamps' France face Gustavo Alfaro's Paraguay at the Philadelphia Stadium.