Senegal produced their most dominant display of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Saturday, dismantling Iraq 5-0 at Toronto’s BMO Field while, simultaneously in Boston, France were putting on a show of their own with a breathtaking 4-1 victory over Norway.

It was a dramatic evening of Group I football played out across two venues at the same time, with both results carrying significant consequences for the final standings.

In Toronto, the Lions of Teranga became the first African nation to score five goals in a single World Cup match. Habib Diarra set the tone in the fourth minute, rising to meet a delivery from the right and powering a header into the corner. The game was then turned on its head when Iraq defender Rebin Sulaka was shown a straight red card following a VAR review, having brought down Sadio Mané as he bore down on goal. Down to ten men and facing a Senegalese side desperate for a big win, Iraq’s resistance crumbled entirely in the second half. Ismaila Sarr added his third goal of the tournament, further strikes followed, and Iliman Ndiaye capped the rout with a fine long-range effort in the 82nd minute to complete a historic scoreline.

Across in Boston at the very same time, France were delivering an equally emphatic statement. The night had been billed as a showdown between Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland, but it was Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé who stole the show entirely, completing a stunning first-half hat-trick inside 32 minutes the second-earliest in World Cup history. He opened in the seventh minute from a Mbappé assist, struck again on 20 with a dipping left-footed finish, and curled in his third in the 32nd to become only the third France player ever to score a World Cup hat-trick after Just Fontaine and Mbappé himself.

Norway, who had rested ten regular starters including Haaland and captain Martin Ødegaard with the knockouts in mind, briefly threatened through Thelo Aasgaard, who pulled one back seconds after Dembélé’s second. But France were ruthless, Mike Maignan saved a Jørgen Strand Larsen penalty, and Désiré Doué headed in a fourth deep into stoppage time to put the gloss on a commanding performance.

France topped Group I as winners and face the round of 32 with serious momentum and firepower. Norway finished second and will face Ivory Coast in Dallas. Senegal, meanwhile, finished third and are now nervously watching the other groups play out, hoping their five-goal haul is enough to secure one of the eight spots reserved for the best third-placed sides in the tournament.