ARLINGTON, TX – It has been nearly two years since France was held scoreless in any international competition, dating back to a 0-0 draw in November 2024 versus Israel in the UEFA Nations League. 

Against Spain in the World Cup semifinals, though, just about everything went wrong for the championship favorites.

Les Bleus, led by a world-class attacking trio of Michael Olise, Kylian Mbappé – the Golden Boot leader – and Ousmane Dembélé, the reigning Ballon d’Or winner, did more than just fail to score in their 2-0 loss, they struggled to create scoring chances, in general. France created zero big chances, only had three shots on goal and finished the match with 0.30 expected goals.

Looking to avenge its 2022 World Cup loss to Argentina, France brought its worst game at the worst time. 

“It’s an immense disappointment,” France midfielder Rayan Cherki said after the game. “Today we lost against ourselves. We didn’t lose against the referee, we didn’t lose…