World Cup in Philly: More rain expected as fans leave following France win; fan fest shut down at Fairmount Park; latest forecast

Kylian Mbappé scored two goals and reigning Ballon D’or winner Ousmane Dembele fueled a 3-0 win against Iraq inside Philadelphia Stadium, with Dembele’s goal and Mbappé’s second both arriving after a near one hour, 30 minute rain delay at Philadelphia Stadium.

The goals for Mbappe were his fourth and fifth of the tournament and the 16th of his World Cup career. He trails only Lionel Messi, who has 18 World Cup goals, after scoring two earlier today in Argentina’s win against Austria in Group J.

With the win, France secured its place in the knockout round, but have yet to win Group I outright with Norway on their heels. At the time of this report, the Norwegians were up 1-0 against Senegal.

IRVINE, Calif. – I am sitting in my hotel room here, where it is definitely not thunderstorming, but I’ve been waiting out the delay in France-Iraq like everyone else.

As it happens, an old friend of mine is in Philadelphia today to do one of the many radio broadcasts back to France of the game.

Julien Froment is the director of the sports department at Radio France, one of that country’s biggest broadcasters, and his team is perched in the outside media seats in the upper deck.

Alex Freeman’s fast rise with the U.S. team has no bigger fan than his father, former Eagles and Green Bay Packers wide receiver Antonio Freeman. When Alex scored the game’s second goal against Australia, he achieved the rare feat of scoring a World Cup goal in a stadium where his father scored two touchdowns 30 years earlier.

Antonio stopped by Monday’s practice to talk with the media and share his joy.

“I’m sure Alex has heard enough from other people about my success and my moments,” he said. “I don’t really talk about those moments too much. But it was definitely a full circle moment. to just have a father and son combination in any sport have an impact on a game in the same stadium, same state, it’s pretty amazing.”

Loud cheers erupted twice from the steamy main concourse level of Philadelphia Stadium after it was announced that fans were able to return to their seats. A band of sunlight crept through and hit sections 118-121.

It looked like the game was set to return. However, public address announcer Kevin Casey notified fans that the match was still suspended, cheers changed to groans, but in true Philly fashion, people still milled to their seats.

During the downpour, a fan services official in section 106 was overheard saying, “these people paid good money for their seat, I can’t be the one to tell them to get up if they don’t want to, and if they want to get loud with me, that’s what Apex [stadium security services] is for.

Fans at Lincoln Financial Field are being evacuated out of the stands and being told to seek shelter as severe thunderstorms move through the region.

"People at the Philadelphia Stadium should seek safe shelter immediately!" the National Weather Service warned in a advisory.

The game is currently at halftime, with France up on Iraq 1-0. The start of the second half will be delayed at least 15 minutes.

It's pouring in South Philadelphia as severe storms move through the region.

FIFA will only pause play if there is a lightning strike within eight miles of the stadium. If that happens, the match will remain paused for 30 minutes, with any subsequent lightning strikes resetting the clock.

A storm warning is in effect until 6:15 p.m. if it rains like it did out in Valley forge way, this could turn into a swim meet.

For the most part, French fans in Philadelphia for Monday’s game seemed to agree.

“The architecture looks quite French,” said French fan Tao Taumas, pointing to City Hall on Monday. “Yes, a lot, and we are living in Montreal now, and it looks exactly like the French part of Montreal.”

Vincent Magardeau, who traveled to Philadelphia with Taumas, did not fully agree with his friend’s conclusion.

Fawzi Bedaweed, an Iraqi native from Zakho, traveled to Philadelphia by way of Texas to watch his beloved "Lions of Mesopotamia" take on France. 

A budding social media star, Bedaweed has built up a loyal following on social media sharing Iraqi culture during the World Cup. In Philadelphia, that took the form of handing out authentic Iraqi food like dolma to fans outside Lincoln Financial Field. 

“We’re going to win! Iraq!” Bedaweed chanted, dancing on the sidewalk.

It could just be the time of day, or that fact that it's a 5 p.m. match on a Monday, but the revelry, excitement, and energy that transpired on SEPTA’s Broad Street Line an hour before kickoff compared to Friday’s match between Brazil-Haiti has fallen off.

That's not to say there won't be a significant crowd in-stadium, but traveling the express subway down was not the method of choice at this hour.

The subway line was packed heading to the match after the City Hall stop on Friday at 8 p.m., a little less than hour before the game started. Let’s just say it was a vibe.

Whenever the France-Iraq game kicks off, Philly fans will get to see some of soccer’s biggest stars on the field.

Les Bleus will have Kylian Mbappé, Bradley Barcola, Ousmane Dembélé, and Michael Olise as the front four in their attack, as fearsome a quarter as there is anywhere in the world’s game.

It’s a little bit of lineup rotation from the group that started France’s entertaining 3-1 win over Senegal in the Meadowlands on Tuesday, as Barcola comes in for Désiré Doué — another of the world’s brightest young talents.

The FIFA Fan Festival is shut down for the day, but the pre-match party is rolling on across the city.

Mahir Sanori and Gene Lazarraga staked out their spot across from the bar at Lion Sports Bar in Chinatown by 3:20 p.m., more than an hour before France and Iraq’s scheduled kick-off time.

Sanori and Lazarraga have no connection to France, aside from Lazarraga’s French classes at Delran High School in Burlington County, but the former high school classmates chose to cheer on Les Bleus.

IRVINE, Calif. – Star playmaker Christian Pulisic was back on the field in practice for the U.S. men’s soccer team on Monday, taking part for the first time since before the tournament opener against Paraguay.

That was a good sign as the Hershey native recovers from the calf injury that kept him out of the second group stage contest against Australia. But it’s just one step, and practice was open to the media for the first 15 minutes. So we don’t know what happened after that.

Since the United States has already clinched first place, there isn’t much reason to play Pulisic in Thursday’s group finale against Turkey (10 p.m., Fox29, Telemundo 62). There also isn’t much reason to play the players on yellow cards — defenders Chris Richards and Antonee Robinson, midfielder Tyler Adams, and striker Folarin Balogun — since a booking in that game would get them suspended from the round of 32.

The broadcast screens at the FIFA Fan Festival went from showing the Argentina-Austria match to an orange screen with a warning that thunderstorms were approaching the area around 1:40 p.m. 

Minutes later, the orange warning switched to a red warning, indicating that “a thunderstorm with lightning is approaching the park.”

Festival organizers said the grounds could re-open if the storm passes through the area quickly. The festival asked fans to pay attention to its social media feeds for further updates on Monday's schedule.

Gov. Josh Shapiro became the latest elected official to visit the FIFA Fan Festival when he stopped by Lemon Hill Park on Monday afternoon, ahead of France and Iraq’s meeting in Philadelphia this evening.

Shapiro, sporting a navy blue U.S. Soccer polo, walked the festival grounds before kick-off of Monday’s first match, between defending champion Argentina and Austria.

“What a unique event and historic moment for our city at this historic juncture of 250 years,” Shapiro said. “To be able to be together and just celebrate one another, celebrate this great sport and enjoy yourself… I think the world needs some more togetherness, needs some more cheer, and this is a great opportunity for that.”

That’s the front page headline today in L’Équipe, France’s national sports newspaper and one of the most influential sports outlets in Europe.

Whether or not they read The Inquirer (we hope they do!), the word is out that thunderstorms are on the way to South Philadelphia, and are expected to hit the stadium around the time that France and Iraq are on the field (5 p.m., Fox29, Telemundo 62).

The paper’s coverage setting the stage for the game includes some teaching of Philadelphia lore. And of course, it’s Rocky-themed, since Iraq’s challenge is a classic World Cup underdog story.

France, a favorite by many to win the whole tournament, will take on Iraq in the second game of Group I tonight, but if it’s anything like the previous two matches, the game itself will once again not be the story.

Because for the past two games, the attraction has been that of the fans, and the unbridled passion people have for not just a team and its players, but the nation so many have bought jerseys for, the emblem they proudly wear above their heart, or in the middle of their chest.

This spectacle of what will result in 104 matches of underdogs becoming story lines, a U.S. men’s national team exercising the type of dominance very few expected, has also seen Philly lead the way on the main stage, creating lasting memories for thousands of fans who have flocked to the city, all while becoming lore, in the process.

Some have called Philadelphia the “Paris of America.” Really.

It might be hard for locals to wrap their heads around the title, but there is some truth to the comparison — mostly due to the cities’ similarities in architecture. With France in town to take on Iraq in the World Cup Monday night, here’s a look at some of Philadelphia’s Parisian connections.

The Benjamin Franklin Parkway is the most glaring example of Philadelphia borrowing from the French. Finished in 1929, the parkway was designed primarily by two Frenchman, architect Paul Philippe Cret and city-planner Jacques Gréber. Their inspiration? Paris’ Champs-Élysées, a similarly grand avenue that stretches throughout the city. The two also both boast similar end points. The Champs-Élysées concludes with the grand Arc de Triomphe while Philadelphians can spot the Philadelphia Museum of Art from the parkway’s start at City Hall.

Heading into Monday's World Cup matches, three teams have already punched their ticket to the next round of the tournament.

Among them is the United States, which have won two games in the World Cup group stage for the first time since 1930. The U.S. has one more group stage match – against Turkey Thursday night – and will play in the Round of 32 on July 1 in San Francisco Stadium at 8 p.m. Philly time.

Here's a rundown of all the World Cup teams that have qualified for the next round, and those that have already been eliminated from contention:

Thunderstorms are expected to make their way through the Philadelphia region later this evening, potentially interrupting tonight’s World Cup match between France and Iraq.

The strongest of the storms are forecast to move in beginning around 4 p.m., bringing with them heavy rain, wind gusts approaching 60 mph, and the potential for an isolated tornado.

“Storms will certainly have lightning with them,” said Zack Cooper, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Mt. Holly station.

Eight years ago, when FIFA announced that the World Cup would be coming to the United States in 2026, a student in France felt a rush of excitement. He and his friends had been watching the international soccer tournament on television since they were kids.

They’d never seen it in person. The last time their native country hosted the competition was in 1998, before all four Frenchmen were born. In the years since, they’d tried to make it to a game, but to no avail.

Russia hosted in 2018, but the four friends were unable to get visas. Qatar hosted in 2022, but this time, they were attending different colleges, which made traveling logistically complicated. So, they looked ahead to 2026 and started saving money.

Philadelphia has hosted two World Cup matches so far – Ivory Coast's upset of Ecuador, and Brazil's blowout of Haiti.

Philadelphia Stadium, as it's called during the tournament, will host four more World Cup games, including a Round of 16 matchup on July 4.

Unfortunately, Philly won't host the U.S., which clinched a first-place finish in the group stage. They needed to finish in third place to even have a chance of winding up the the Linc.