France at the FIFA World Cup France at the FIFA World Cup This is a record of France's results at the FIFA World Cup. France was one of the four European teams that participated at the inaugural World Cup in 1930 and have appeared in 15 FIFA World Cups, tied for the sixth most of any country. The national team is one of eight to have won the FIFA World Cup title and one of only six to have done so more than once. The French team won its first World Cup title in 1998. The tournament was played on home soil and France defeated Brazil
1950 FIFA World Cup was not admitted to FIFA until 1952. The French-occupied Saarland had been accepted by FIFA two weeks before the World Cup. Italy, Austria, and other countries that had been involved in World War II as allies of Germany and Japan, were able to participate in qualification. Italy qualified automatically as defending champions of 1938. Finland, despite being a co-belligerent of Nazi Germany from 1941-1944, was allowed to qualify but withdrew before qualification was complete, and FIFA declared their matches as friendlies. The British nations were invited to take part, having rejoined FIFA four years earlier, after 17 years of self-imposed