French media delivered a frank assessment after France's 0-2 World Cup semi-final loss to Spain in Dallas. L'Equipe headlined "Fallen star" with a forlorn Kylian Mbappe image, calling the team "powerless" against the European champions. The paper published brutal player ratings with no player above 5/10: Lucas Digne, Ousmane Dembele, and Michael Olise received 2/10, while Mbappe and coach Didier Deschamps got 3/10. Deschamps takes charge of his final match in Saturday's third-place play-off.

Le Parisien chose "Rude awakening," saying France "never found the key to break down the Spanish Armada." Corse Martin used the Spanish word for disappointment, noting France were "outclassed." Le Figaro stated Spain "taught France a lesson," while Ouest France called it the "end of the American dream." Every paper featured a disappointed Mbappe on their front page.

Midfielder Rayan Cherki said: "We lost to ourselves... The only team capable of eliminating us was ourselves." Deschamps acknowledged Spain's strength: "We were below our standard, we committed more technical flaws... we did not give it all."