During France’s Round of 16 World Cup matchup against Paraguay, on July 4, in Philadelphia—250 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed some 3 miles from Philadelphia Stadium—David Thompson was decked out in American red, white, and blue in the stands. But he was also sporting face paint across both cheeks: a rendering of the national flag of France.
“I knew it was going to be our 250th birthday, and everybody knows the story of the French helping the U.S. fight the Brits, and so it made sense for me to come here to support the French team,” says Thompson, 42, an education policy consultant who lives in Austin, Texas. “There’s a lot of Americans with American jerseys in this stadium today, and I think we’re all really excited to see France, and then go see some amazing fireworks in Philly. We don’t think about the history enough: who our friends are, and who we should be supporting in sports.”
A strong Paraguay fan group showed up, but the France supporters like Thompson—whether they were wearing Les Bleus kits, or the Stars and Stripes—walked away from the Fourth of July football festival satisfait. France survived Paraguay’s physical gameplan to beat La Albirroja, the red and white, 1-0 to advance to play Morocco, which shut out Canada on Saturday 3-0, in a quarterfinal on July 9 in Foxboro, Mass. France superstar Kylian Mbappé converted a penalty in the 70th minute to make the difference. Mbappé is now tied with Lionel Messi for the World Cup lead in goals scored, with 7. Messi plays in the Round of 16 on July 7, against Egypt, in Atlanta.
Fans expecting brilliant French offense in the Philadelphia Stadium sweatbox had reason to be disappointed. Les Bleus put at least three goals on the board in each of their four World Cup games coming into the Paraguay clash, while outscoring their opponents (Senegal, Iraq, Norway, and Sweden) 13-2. Paraguay, however, came in looking to limit France’s chances, by any means necessary—even if that meant knocking French players to the ground, seemingly at every opportunity.
France controlled possession for 76% of the game and outshot Paraguay 15-5. Yet it took some fancy second-half footwork from sub Désiré Doué, who came onto the field in the 61st minute, to clinch the victory. Doué shimmied around a quartet of Paraguay players before contact from Deigo Gomez sent him to the ground; after a video assistant referee (or VAR) review, France was awarded a penalty.
Ousmane Dembélé, winner of the 2025 Ballon d’Or as the world player of the year, took the ball in the penalty area as a half-dozen Paraguayan players surrounded him, attempting to get in his head. Dembélé laughed. But Mbappé, naturally, would take the shot. He approached the ball, stuttered, and tucked it inside the right post, as Paraguay’s 6-foot-6 keeper, Orlando Gill, dove in the opposite direction.
“We showed that we are not just a team that can play attacking football,” Mbappé said after the game. “If we have to get our hands dirty, we will get our hands dirty.”
Cinderella stories are nice. But Paraguay’s brute tactics betray soccer’s “beautiful game” moniker. Paraguay, which lost to the United States 4-1 in the group stage, is admirable for giving France a challenge. But it’s not a lovable underdog like, say, Cape Verde, the tiny nation that equalized Argentina twice in a Round of 32 classic on Friday before falling 3-2. Paraguay won no hearts and minds. The World Cup’s better with France in it.
And that feeling prevails on Independence Day, especially in the City of Brotherly Love. France’s Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de Lafayette, better known in the U.S. as Marquis de Lafayette, fought alongside Americans in their pursuit of freedom, then prevailed on King Louis XVI to fortify the U.S. cause with weapons and soldiers and money. Benjamin Franklin, Philadelphia’s shining light, also helped charm France into giving its support. France was the first country to grant diplomatic recognition to the newly formed American Republic. And a fleet led by French naval officer François Joseph Paul de Grasse helped the U.S. win the decisive Battle of the Chesapeake in 1781.
The U.S. might not be celebrating its 250th anniversary, and hosting a World Cup soccer game in Philadelphia, or any other city, were it not for France.
“It’s a payback, too, for what they did for us 250 years ago,” says Thompson. “The least I could do is sit in the stands and cheer them on.”
Thompson, 42, is now headed for Seattle to support the U.S. team on Monday, against Belgium. He says he’s played soccer since he was 4 years old, but he did not have the opportunity to attend the 1994 World Cup since his family couldn’t afford it.
“Getting to be here, getting to see Mbappé score,” says Thompson, “it’s a dream come true.”
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