France held by Iceland and loses perfect record in qualifying for World Cup

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France missed a chance to secure a spot at the 2026 World Cup on Monday after being held to 2-2 at Iceland.

The result in Reykjavik halted France's perfect start in European qualifying after three straight victories. The two-time world champion could have sealed qualification if it had beaten Iceland and Ukraine failed to defeat Azerbaijan. Ukraine won 2-1.

Runner-up at the 2022 World Cup, France still leads Group D with 10 points, three more than Ukraine.

France was without captain Kylian Mbappé, who scored in the team’s 3-0 victory over Azerbaijan on Friday but limped off the field with a right ankle injury.

Iceland took the lead with a goal by Victor Palsson in the 39th minute but the visitors rallied with Christopher Nkunku scoring in the 63rd minute and Jean-Philippe Mateta in the 68th. Iceland evened the match with Kristian Hlynsson a couple of minutes later.

Iceland stayed with four points after four matches, three more than Azerbaijan.

Switzerland also had a chance to secure a World Cup spot but it couldn't manage more than 0-0 at Slovenia.

Switzerland would have qualified if it had beaten Slovenia and Kosovo failed to defeat Sweden. Kosovo won 1-0 to reach seven points in Group B, three fewer than Switzerland. Slovenia has three points and Sweden, also winless like Slovenia, has one.

Liverpool's Alexander Isak spurned three dangerous chances for host Sweden against Kosovo.

The 12 group winners qualify automatically, with the 12 runner-ups entering a playoff along with the four best-ranked group winners of the 2024-25 Nations League.

The 16 teams will be drawn into four playoff paths, with four teams in each, to determined the four remaining European qualifiers. Playoff matches will be played in single-leg semifinals followed by single-leg finals within the same international window in March 2026.

Germany beat Northern Ireland 1-0 in Belfast with a first-half goal by Nick Woltemade, staying even with Slovakia with nine points each atop Group A. Slovakia beat Luxembourg 2-0.

In other results, North Macedonia drew with Kazakhstan 1-1, while Belgium came from behind to win at Wales 4-2 with a pair of penalty kicks converted by Kevin de Bruyne.

Play was briefly delayed after a rat entered the field as Belgium led 2-1 in the second half. The rat was spotted outside the area of goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. The Belgian tried to pick up the rat but it escaped. Wales forward Brennan Johnson ended up chasing it away through the sidelines as the crowd cheered.

Belgium leads Group J with 14 points, one more than North Macedonia and three more than Wales.

“I’m proud of the boys," said Wales captain Ben Davies, who made his 100th senior international appearance. "We got Belgium to show us a lot of respect and to sit back and play on the counterattack against us, and that doesn’t happen too often. Their game plan worked tonight, and it’s another big learning curve for a young group.”

The 2026 World Cup will be in the United States, Canada and Mexico. It is the first with an expanded field of 48 teams, up from 32.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer