Paraguay vs France: World Cup Round of 16 preview, predictions and bet builder tips

• Fixture: Paraguay vs France

• Competition: World Cup - Round of 16

• Date: Saturday, 4 July, 2026

• Kick-off: 22:00 BST

• Venue: Philadelphia, USA

Our prediction: Paraguay 1-4 France

Paraguay

Our predicted XI (4-4-2): Gill / Caceres, Gomez, Canale, Alonso / Almiron, Bobadilla, Cubas, Galarza / Avalos, Enciso

France

Our predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Maignan / Kounde, Upamecano, Saliba, Digne / Tchouameni, Rabiot / Dembele, Olise, Barcola / Mbappe

Kylian Mbappe is once again showing his elite talent on the world stage with six goals already at this tournament - with his overall World Cup tally already on an astonishing 18, only one behind leader Lionel Messi.

The Real Madrid star has scored a brace in three of his four games so far, including against Sweden, and has opened the scoring in all of those games. With the 27-year-old odds-on to add to his goals tally, tipping him to score the first goal once again feels like the smart move.

Mbappe's goalscoring numbers are matched in the assists charts at the World Cup by his team-mate Michael Olise, who alongside Mbappe is a key contender for the World Cup Golden Ball and indeed the 2026 Ballon d'Or award.

The Bayern Munich playmaker is at the top of his game, switching to a more central position for Les Bleus with ease, and has created 10 chances at the World Cup to go with his six assists.

If Mbappe is the favourite to score, Olise is undoubtedly the frontrunner to provide an assist and that's why there can be only one pick for the second leg of our bet builder.

We move to France to score over 2.5 goals for our third pick, a selection which has come in for all four of France's games so far.

Paraguay provided a sensational performance to tame Germany, but France are on a different level to even the Germans right now as they hunt a third World Cup with some dazzling displays. While the South Americans will sit in again in a low block, Deschamps' men have an abundance of tools at their disposal to unlock the defence and we think their streak of scoring at least three goals per game will continue here.

Finally, and unsurprisingly, we have rounded off our bet builder with a France win in 90 minutes. While Paraguay's win on penalties over Germany was one of the moments of the tournament so far, we just don't see a scenario where they pull off another upset when France are in this kind of form.

France should have little issue grabbing the win, which will set up a quarter-final tie against either co-hosts Canada or 2022 semi-finalists Morocco.

You can bet on each of these markets individually, or combine them to create a Paraguay vs France Bet Builder. Plus, with Bet Builder+, you can combine your bet not only with other World Cup matches, but also with different sports.

Check out our full range of World Cup match previews, with our experts providing bet builder tips throughout the tournament.

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All odds and market details are accurate as of the time of publication.

View the latest World Cup 2026 odds.