Twenty years after France won its first World Cup final at home in Paris, our team brings the golden trophy home for a second time, this time from Moscow. See this video of Paris paying homage to its national team.

 

It was a dramatic end to an exciting month of football in Russia. The match against the strong Croatian team ended 4 - 2, including a stunning goal from Paris St Germain football club's latest star, 19-year-old Kylian Mbappé. making him the first teenager to score in a World Cup final since Brazilian legend Pelé in 1958. France's manager Didier Deschamps also goes down in history as only the third man to win the World Cup both as a player and manager. 

 

President Macron had traveled from Paris to Russia to attend the match and see our team's triumph, and warmly hugged every player after the match. Macron literally jumped for joy as he celebrated the French win, marking a fantastic end to what has been a tournament full of surprises. 

 

France took the lead first with an own goal from Croatian forward Mario Mandzukic, as the ball skimmed off his head and past his own goalkeeper Subasic after a French corner kick. Although the moment was shrouded in misfortune for Croatia, it demonstrated the power, impact, and importance of set plays throughout this World Cup. Croatia quickly recovered from this mishap and equalized ten minutes later after Perisic scored following a free-kick from Modric.

 

The VAR system (Video Assisted Referee) confirmed a hand-ball from Perisic and France scored the third goal of the match from the resulting penalty taken by Griezmann. 

 

It was still a close match after half-time until Manchester United star Pogba scored the goal of his career with his left foot, after Griezmann and Mbappé had set him up on the edge of the penalty area. Mbappé fired in the fourth goal six minutes later to become the second youngest player ever to score a goal in a World Cup final (Pele was just 17 when he scored for Brazil in 1958). 

 

 

Many may have thought France could breathe a sigh of relief after increasing their lead by three goals to 4 - 1, but with 20 minutes of the match remaining, Croatia continued to fight back hard. A lapse in concentration from French goalkeeper Lloris gave Mandzukic the opportunity to score Croatia's second goal and both sides played hard right up to the last minute. 

 

As the full-time whistle was blown, President Macron jumped out of his seat in celebration and French manager Deschamps was thrown in the air by his jubilant French players. Thousands are expected to line the streets of Paris as their champions return home on Tuesday 16th July.

We are very excited to see what will become of this talented young French team in the next few years! 

 

The next major sporting event, the Ryder Cup, will be held in Paris from 25-30 September 2018. Golf lovers who plan to attend may like to take the opportunity to visit other parts of France too. We would be very happy to plan the perfect itinerary for you!

France Just For You

Experts in self-drive tours in France

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Judy
I can echo everything that has been said in the previous three reviews. The personalization of this entire trip was incredible and Emilie communicated quickly and completely, both in the planning of the trip and after we were in France. My husband and I were spending four weeks in France in celebration of our 50th anniversary. We were a little …
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This was the best trip to France we have ever been on! It was the second trip that Emilie and Laura at France Just for You set up for us. The first was a trip around Provence, which we loved so much that we asked them to set up our second trip to the Loire Valley, Normandy, and Paris. Both trips were tailored to our interests - food, wine, art …
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This was our second trip arranged by France Just for You. That says a lot. What says more is we would do another trip with them without any concern. They are pros from the time the trip is planned to the very last minute of the journey. Every detail is provided through the travel book, app and communication, if needed, during the trip. We would …
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Travelers wanting to experience France need look no further than France Just for You. Emilie works very hard to make sure travelers have a care-free, positive, unique experience that they could have never found on their own or with a bus tour group. If you dislike prefabricated group tours, and/or feel unconfident about traveling in a foreign …
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My wife and I and two friends decided we would like to visit France and by chance I found Emilie's website and initiated an online conversation with her over a year ago. We really did not know what we wanted to do, nor where we wanted to go and so our planning became a moving feast, most ably supported by Emilie. How she ever put up with our …