Soccer’s biggest superstars have seized the opportunity to shine brightest on the sport’s biggest stage.
Now two of the absolute best are set to clash with first place in Group I on the line later today.
Kylian Mbappe continues to chase Lionel Messi for the all-time tournament goals record (18), scoring twice in each of France’s two wins to raise his career total to 16.
Meanwhile, Erling Haaland has already set a tournament record for goals by a Norwegian player with four and has scored in 12 straight competitive matches for his country.
Now for the very first time on the international stage, Mbappe and Haaland will go head-to-head.
Will Mbappe and Haaland deliver another masterclass?
Let’s set the stage for today’s matches and lock in a couple of FanDuel Best Bets in this Morning Coffee column for Friday June 26th, 2026.
Mbappe, Haaland Meet As France, Norway Clash For Top Spot In Group I
Norway entered the tournament as a top 10 choice to lift the trophy at 35-to-1 to at FanDuel.
While Norway was a heavy favourite to qualify for the knockout stage at -900, their odds to win Group I ticked up from +250 to +280 in the final days before kick-off.
At +280, FanDuel gave Norway a 26.3 per cent implied chance to finish first in its group.
France was the second choice to lift the trophy at +470 behind only Spain (+450), and the obvious favourite to win Group I at -210.
Fast-forward two weeks later, Norway will need to pull off the head-to-head upset win versus France at +370 at FanDuel to clinch top spot in Group I.
France to clinch first place with a win or draw is -550.
While Haaland has the talent to deliver again versus a talented backline, Mbappe can match him at the other end, and has a lot more support.
France is the deepest team in this tournament.
While Mbappe is only the fourth man to score two or more goals in three consecutive tournament appearances, he isn’t the only superstar capable of being the difference maker in a match of this magnitude.
Ousmane Dembele scored his first career tournament goal in his 13th tournament appearance in a 3-0 win over Iraq on Matchday 2.
Bradley Barcola scored a goal in France’s 3-1 over Senegal on Matchday 1.
Michael Olise is tied with Sweden’s Alexander Isak for the most assists in the tournament with three.
Olise is still searching for his first goal of the tournament despite five total shot attempts in the first two matches.
After scoring six goals in its first two matches, France’s attack is expected to be busy again this afternoon.
France over 1.5 total goals is -210 at FanDuel.
Over 2.5 goals in the match can also be found at -210.
Both teams to score is -182 at FanDuel.
If you are a regular reader of this column or follow me on X, then you already know that I’ve been parlaying Mbappe, Haaland, and Lionel Messi to score two or more goals in every match.
On Matchday 1, a three-leg parlay with Mbappe, Haaland, and Messi to score two or more paid +8623.
A three-leg parlay with all three to score the first goal in their respective matches paid +4328.
On Matchday 2, I hit a three-leg parlay with Mbappe, Haaland, and Messi to score two or more at +12380.
The first goal parlay was +6931 and missed by one leg as Haaland scored the second and third goals for Norway in a 3-2 win over Senegal.
A three-leg parlay with all three to score an anytime goal was +598.
Turning the page to Matchday 3, there was no doubt that the numbers for soccer’s biggest superstars would move significantly prior to kick-off.
Mbappe anytime goal has gone from +105 to -130.
Mbappe to score two or more from +480 to +430.
Haaland anytime goal has gone from +160 to +130.
Haaland to score two or more is still +750.
Meanwhile, with Mbappe and Haaland going head-to-head, only one can potentially score the first goal.
Mbappe remains the favourite at +340, while France’s Jean-Philippe Mateta (+490) also has shorter odds to score the first goal than Haaland (+500).
France can clinch first place in Group I with a win or draw.
Despite Norway being the team that needs the victory, France is still the favourite to score first at -195.
Meanwhile, an anytime goal scorer parlay with Mbappe and Haaland could be found at +467 after Matchday 2.
That same parlay is +280 at FanDuel this morning.
A three-leg anytime goal scorer parlay with Mbappe, Haaland, and Messi has gone from +773 to +491.
The winner of Group I will face a third-place team in the Round of 32.
The runner-up will face Cote d’Ivoire.
While this will be the toughest test both sides have faced, I believe Mbappe and Haaland will both have an impact on this match.
As I wrote about earlier in the week, this is a potentially once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for both superstars to redefine their legacies on soccer’s biggest stage.
After Mbappe, Haaland, and Messi delivered historic performances in their first two matches, there was never a doubt that the goal markets for all three would shift in the days leading up to Matchday 3.
Hopefully, you have tailed since the tournament started.
As for this edition of Morning Coffee, I’ll lock in a parlay with France over 1.5 total goals and Senegal to beat Iraq as a FanDuel Best Bet at -129.
Senegal put up a fight versus France and Norway and won’t want to go home without a victory to show for it.
Meanwhile, Iraq looked completely outmatched as they conceded seven goals in its two losses.
Hopefully, we can end the group stage on a hot streak.
Have a great day, everyone!
