Ousmane Dembele scored a first-half hat-trick as France beat a heavily rotated Norway side 4-1 to finish top of Group I at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Norway manager Stale Solbakken made 10 changes, resting Erling Haaland and several regulars, but Dembele stole the show with three goals in 32 minutes.
He became the first player to score a first-half World Cup hat-trick since Oleg Salenko in 1994.
France, led by assistant coach Guy Stephan in the absence of Didier Deschamps, took the lead in the seventh minute when Dembele finished after being set up by Kylian Mbappe.
He doubled the advantage in the 20th minute with a curling left-footed strike before Norway briefly responded through Thelo Aasgaard.
Dembele completed his treble before halftime with another superb finish, putting him in contention for the Golden Boot. Norway had a chance to cut the deficit after the break, but Jorgen Strand Larsen’s penalty was saved by Mike Maignan.
Dembele was withdrawn after 65 minutes, and Desire Doue added a late fourth to seal an emphatic win.
