The 2018 World Cup final didn’t disappoint (though this website predicted that it might). France beat Croatia 4-2 in a match that yielded more goals than the previous three finals combined. For Croatia’s golden generation, this might have been the last hurrah. Their best players — Golden Ball winner Luka Modric and midfield genius Ivan […]
France entered the European Championships in 2016 with perhaps the most talented squad, and Les Bleus beat fellow tournament favorite Germany in the semifinal. A final matchup loomed against a less-heralded Portugal, which had never won the tournament. Portugal had played a defensive style that bottled up the midfield and limited opposition attacking opportunities. Sound […]
Over the next few days, FiveThirtyEight will be examining each of the eight groups in the 2018 World Cup, which begins June 14 in Russia. Read about Group A and Group B. Group C is all about France. The issue isn’t so much whether the team will qualify for the knockout stage of the World […]