France - Northern Ireland live - Football

On 8 June 2026, France host Northern Ireland in a pre-World Cup international friendly at the Decathlon Arena - Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille - a final rehearsal for Les Bleus ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Match Info: France vs Northern Ireland

The match kicks off on Monday, 8 June 2026 at 20:00 BST (19:00 UTC) at the Decathlon Arena - Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille Métropole, France. The fixture is part of the pre-tournament international friendly schedule ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Where to Watch France vs Northern Ireland?

Viewers in England and Northern Ireland can watch the match on BBC Three, with free streaming available via BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport Web. This makes the game accessible to anyone with a BBC account, without the need for a paid subscription.

In Ireland, BBC Sport Web also streams the game. Elsewhere across the world, the match is available on DAZN in Germany, Austria, Belgium, Canada and Switzerland, on TF1 in France with free streaming on TF1+ and Molotov.tv, and on Disney+ across most of South America. In the United States, coverage falls to Fox Sports 2, FOX One, Foxsports.com and Fubo TV.

Fans in Arab countries can tune into beIN Sports Arabia 1 HD or beIN Sports English 1, while UEFA TV provides a global broadcast option for regions not covered by a dedicated broadcaster.

France vs Northern Ireland - Match Preview

France are heavy favourites, arriving on the back of 4 wins in their last 5 matches - including victories over Brazil and Colombia - as they fine-tune their squad ahead of the 2026 World Cup Group I campaign against Senegal, Iraq and Norway.

This match marks Northern Ireland's first return to France since their memorable UEFA Euro 2016 campaign, during which Michael O'Neill's side reached the round of 16 on French soil. The gap in quality between the two sides is substantial, yet friendlies carry their own logic - Northern Ireland will use the occasion to build momentum ahead of their UEFA Nations League B Group B2 campaign (Hungary, Ukraine, Georgia) starting in September.

For France, this is the last major rehearsal before their World Cup opener. Manager Didier Deschamps is expected to rotate the squad, giving fringe players vital minutes on an international stage. That rotation means Northern Ireland face a partly experimental French side, and Michael O'Neill's players have the opportunity to test themselves at the very highest level.

Head-to-Head: France vs Northern Ireland

France have dominated every meeting with Northern Ireland in history, winning all 3 encounters and scoring 9 goals while conceding just 1 - a record that places Les Bleus firmly in control of this head-to-head rivalry, spanning nearly seven decades.

The three all-time meetings between France and Northern Ireland are:

• 19 June 1958 - FIFA World Cup (Quarter-final) - France 4:0 Northern Ireland
• 4 July 1982 - FIFA World Cup (2nd Round, Group D) - Northern Ireland 1:4 France
• 18 August 1999 - International Friendly - Northern Ireland 0:1 France

France - Recent Form

France head into this match in outstanding form, winning 4 of their last 5 games, scoring 14 goals and conceding 5 - a run that underlines their status as one of the world's strongest international sides.

March 2026 saw two particularly impressive away victories: a 2:1 win over Brazil on 26 March, followed three days later by a 3:1 victory over Colombia. In November 2025, France recorded a dominant 4:0 home win over Ukraine and a 3:1 away success in Azerbaijan. The only blemish across these five matches was a 2:2 draw with Iceland in October 2025, though even that came on Icelandic soil.

Northern Ireland - Recent Form

Northern Ireland arrive with just 1 win from their last 5 matches, scoring only 2 goals and conceding 5 - form that highlights how challenging this fixture against France will be for Michael O'Neill's side.

Their most recent outing, a 1:1 draw with Wales on 31 March 2026, produced a hard-earned point away from home. Before that, a 0:2 loss to Italy on 26 March exposed defensive vulnerabilities at the highest level. In the autumn 2025 international window, Northern Ireland lost 0:1 to both Slovakia (November) and Germany (October), with a narrow 1:0 home win over Luxembourg in November providing the only bright spot of that period.

Facts and Statistics

5 key facts about the France vs Northern Ireland rivalry ahead of the June 2026 friendly:

• France have won all 3 head-to-head meetings with Northern Ireland, keeping an unbeaten record in this fixture dating back to 1958.
• Across the 2 World Cup meetings (1958 and 1982), France scored 8 goals against Northern Ireland and conceded just 1.
• The last meeting between the two sides was on 18 August 1999 - more than 26 years pass before the 2026 reunion in Lille.
• The Decathlon Arena - Stade Pierre-Mauroy hosted matches during UEFA Euro 2016, the last major tournament in which Northern Ireland played on French soil.
• Northern Ireland scored only 2 goals in their last 5 matches, earning 4 points from a possible 15.