France captain Kylian Mbappé is set to reach another career milestone at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, as he prepares to make his 100th appearance for the national team in tonight’s clash against Iraq. The landmark comes shortly after Mbappé became France’s all-time leading goalscorer, further cementing his status as……
France captain Kylian Mbappé is set to reach another career milestone at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, as he prepares to make his 100th appearance for the national team in tonight’s clash against Iraq.
The landmark comes shortly after Mbappé became France’s all-time leading goalscorer, further cementing his status as one of the country’s greatest footballers. The 27-year-old forward will now join an elite group of players to have earned a century of international caps for Les Bleus.
“It is always a pleasure to have the chance to play for your country. There is nothing bigger – one hundred is a historic figure, and to have the chance to reach that tally here at a World Cup means it will be a special match for me,” Mbappe told reporters Sunday in Philadelphia, where the teams will clash in Group I.
He will become the 10th French player to reach a century of caps, but is still a long way away from the record of 145 appearances held by his former teammate, goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
“The importance and the stakes of the match are what really matter and we need a win to go through,” insisted Mbappe.
He made his senior debut for France in 2017 at the age of 18, and on Monday further etched his name into the record books by becoming the country’s all-time leading goalscorer after netting twice in a 3-1 victory over Senegal at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
The brace took his tally to 58 international goals, surpassing the previous record of 57 held by Olivier Giroud.
Significantly, both milestones have come on football’s biggest stage—the World Cup—a tournament that has been central to Mbappe’s rise since he announced himself to the world during France’s triumphant 2018 campaign in Russia.
He scored four goals en route to lifting the trophy in Russia and followed that up with eight goals at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, including a memorable hat-trick in the final, although France ultimately lost to Argentina, led by Lionel Messi, in a penalty shootout.
“I am aware of what it means to be at a World Cup here and representing over 67 million French people,” said the 27-year-old Real Madrid forward.
“I just want to go down in history for my country. I think a lot of players, given the stakes of a World Cup, don’t fully enjoy it, but I just try to enjoy it, I know how lucky I am.
“I know I have the quality but you still need to go out and show it on the biggest stage at a World Cup and I don’t think a double in the first game is enough to show the full extent of my talent.”
That sounded like a warning to outsiders Iraq, against whom another France win will send the tournament favourites on their way to the knockout stages.
Mbappe has 14 World Cup goals from just 15 appearances, and he is just two away from matching the overall tournament goals record – that was held before this year by Germany’s Miroslav Klose with 16, and equalled by Messi when he scored a hat-trick for Argentina against Algeria last Tuesday.
“I knew Leo Messi would score goals, he always does. He has the record, I am just behind and I will keep trying to score goals,” Mbappe said.
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“That will bring me closer to the record, but the most important thing is going as far as possible with my team.”
Mbappe seems to be especially loving being one of the star names at a World Cup in the United States, and he suggested that he might eventually like to play in Major League Soccer later in his career.
“Of course, the culture is different to ours in Europe, and I have always liked that, the fact that people have ambitions with no limits, and are not afraid to say it,” he admitted.
“Will I come here at the end of my career? I don’t know. David Beckham often asks me. We will see, but it is a country I like and I am happy to be here.”
However, he did indicate that he might not still be playing at World Cups into his forties, like Cristiano Ronaldo at this year’s edition.
“I won’t be doing this at 40, you will have got rid of me by then,” he joked.
