France forward Ousmane Dembélé delivered a masterclass performance, scoring a first-half hat trick in just 32 minutes to lead his team past Norway 4-1 at the World Cup. The Barcelona winger opened scoring in the seventh minute before adding goals in the 20th and 32nd, with Kylian Mbappé providing one assist. This marked the fastest first-half treble at the tournament since Oleg Salenko's 1994 feat.

The victory secured top spot in Group I for France, who finished with nine points after sweeping all three matches. Norway claimed second place with six points despite resting Erling Haaland for the crucial encounter. Paris Saint-Germain's Désiré Doué added a late second-half goal to seal the comfortable win for Didier Deschamps' side.

Dembélé's explosive performance thrust him into the World Cup Golden Boot conversation alongside Haaland, Mbappé, Vinícius Júnior and Lionel Messi. Both France and Norway had already booked their round of 32 places before kickoff, but the result determined their seeding for the knockout phase.

The hat trick ranks among the quickest in World Cup history, trailing only Laszlo Kiss's 7:42 record from 1982 and Erich Probst's 24-minute opening salvo in 1954. France's dominant group stage sets up a favorable path in the knockout rounds.