France wrap up their 2026 World Cup preparations on Monday night as they host Northern Ireland at the Decathlon Arena Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille.For Didier Deschamps side, it represents a crucial final dress rehearsal and a necessary opportunity to fine-tune operations before jetting off to North America, where they are scheduled to kick off their tournament against Senegal on June 16.Les Bleus will enter the clash with plenty of motivation following a surprise 2-1 defeat to Ivory Coast on Thursday. Deschamps labelled that setback a timely World Cup reminder, and he is expected to heavily rotate his squad to give several fringe figures a final audition.Despite missing out on qualification for the tournament themselves following a play-off semi-final defeat to Italy in March, Northern Ireland arrive in France with quiet confidence after grinding out a 1-0 victory over Guinea last week.Michael ONeills youthful side will view the daunting trip to face the worlds top-ranked nation as the ultimate development tool.With the Irish FA recently extending ONeills managerial contract through until 2032, this fixture is being treated as an invaluable benchmark for a rebuilding squad ahead of their upcoming UEFA Nations League campaign in September.Table of ContentsTeam news for France v Northern IrelandPredicted line-ups for France v Northern IrelandWhere to watch France v Northern Ireland: TV and online streamsStats for France v Northern IrelandPrediction for France v Northern IrelandTeam news for France v Northern IrelandDeschamps will still be without a large chunk of his squad as Arsenal and PSG players phase their returns to action after last weekends Champions League final.That means Ibrahima Konate, who recently departed Liverpool, should start in defence while Marcus Thuram could play in attack again.Northern Ireland are not expected to make many changes though Sunderland defender Trai Hume should play.Predicted line-ups for France v Northern IrelandFrance: Maignan; Kounde, Upamecano, Konate, L. Hernandez; Tchouameni, Akliouche, Cherki; Olise, Mbappe, ThuramN Ireland: P. Charles; McConville, Hume, Brown; Smyth, McDonnell, S.Charles, Devenny; Donley, Price; ReidWhere to watch France v Northern Ireland: TV and online streamsThe match will be broadcast in the UK on both BBC Three and BBC Two NI. You can also watch the game live on the iplayer and on the BBC Sport website.Stats for France v Northern IrelandPrediction for France v Northern IrelandFrance may be missing some players still but they have a formidable squad and should be too strong.France 3-0 Northern Ireland Topics France National Football Team Northern Ireland National Football Team Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read France 1-2 Ivory Coast: Report, result and goals as Diallo winner stuns Mbappe and Co before World Cup Cian Cheesbrough 4th June, 2026 France vs Ivory Coast: Line-ups confirmed for World Cup warm-up clash as Mbappe, Olise and Cherki all start Mitch Fretton 4th June, 2026 World Cup 2026 Group I: Preview, prediction, players to watch, fixtures and TV schedule Jon Fisher 3rd June, 2026 France v Ivory Coast Line-ups, stats and preview for World Cup warm-up Tom Rostance 3rd June, 2026 Lego World Cup trophy: Ronaldo, Messi, Mbappe and Vinicius Jr and the story behind their 2026 ad Ben Miller 3rd June, 2026 Ronaldo, Messi, Mbappe, Vinicius Jr: Behind the scenes on Lego World Cup trophy ad 2026 Ben Miller 3rd June, 2026
