The stars continue to shine at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland both scored twice on Monday as France and Norway secured their places in the knockout rounds. While France comfortably defeated Iraq 3-0 in a match interrupted by severe weather, Norway survived a late Senegal comeback to claim a dramatic 3-2 victory.

Storm Delays France Victory

France's win over Iraq was anything but straightforward from an organizational standpoint.

Shortly after halftime, severe thunderstorms forced officials to suspend play in Philadelphia. Fans were evacuated from the stands, players remained in the dressing rooms, and the match was paused for more than two hours before conditions improved enough for football to resume.

By the time play restarted, the pitch had become noticeably heavier, making fluid passing football difficult.

Fortunately for Didier Deschamps' side, they had already established control before the weather chaos began.

Mbappe Continues Record Chase

The breakthrough came in the 27th minute when Mbappe unleashed a powerful strike from outside the box to put France ahead.

After the lengthy delay, Iraq gifted France a second goal. A disastrous mistake while attempting to play out from the back allowed Ousmane Dembele to win possession and square the ball to Mbappe, who simply rolled it into an empty net.

The brace further strengthened Mbappe's place among the greatest World Cup goalscorers of all time. He has now drawn level with Miroslav Klose and sits just two goals behind Lionel Messi, who also scored twice in Argentina's win over Austria.

France added a third through Dembele after an excellent assist from Michael Olise, putting the result beyond any doubt.

Mbappe later had chances to complete a hat-trick but was unable to add to his tally.

Norway Book Their Place in Style

A few hours earlier, Norway became another team to guarantee qualification for the knockout stage.

The Scandinavians defeated Senegal 3-2 in a lively encounter that featured another starring performance from Haaland.

Marcus Pedersen opened the scoring after entering the match much earlier than expected following an injury to Julian Ryerson.

With Norway leading at halftime, Haaland took over after the break.

Haaland Delivers Again

The Manchester City striker doubled Norway's advantage after being set up by Martin Odegaard before adding another goal later in the half by finishing a delivery from Patrick Berg.

The two goals continued Haaland's outstanding tournament form and effectively put Norway in complete control.

Senegal refused to surrender and mounted a late comeback through a brace from Ismaila Sarr, but the African side ran out of time before they could find an equalizer.

Group I Set for Blockbuster Finale

The latest results mean both France and Norway have collected six points from their opening two matches and have already secured progression to the knockout rounds.

Their final group-stage meeting will now determine who finishes first in Group I, setting up one of the most attractive fixtures of the last round.

Meanwhile, Iraq and Senegal will play for pride and their first points of the tournament as their World Cup campaigns probably draw to a close.