Nickname

Les Bleus (blues)

Coach

Raymond Domenech

2010

?

2006

Runners-up: Beaten by Italy in a penalty shoot-out after drawing the final 1-1.

Click here to see France's Squad for Soccer World Cup 2006.

Placed in Group G with South Korea, Switzerland and Togo.

France beat Togo 2-0 in Cologne (to win for its first time in six Soccer World Cup matches, its last win being in the Soccer World Cup 1998 final).

2002

Failed to win a match or score a goal in the group that contained Senegal, Uruguay and Denmark (the first cup-holders to fail in this way).

1998

Champions

1994

Did not qualify.

1990

Did not qualify.

1986

Third place.

1982

Fourth place.

1978

Eliminated in first round.

1974

Did not qualify.

1970

Did not qualify.

1966

Eliminated in first round.

1962

Did not qualify.

1958

Third place, in the process beating Paraguay 7-3 (France's largest Soccer World Cup victory) and losing 2-5 to Brazil (France's biggest Soccer World Cup defeat).

1954

Eliminated in first round.

1950

Did not qualify, but were invited when Turkey pulled out of the competition. France agreed to play but they worked out that the venues for their two group matches were over 3,000 kilometres away from each other. The French told the Brazilians that they would stay home unless the arrangements were changed. The Brazilian Federation refused and France withdrew.

1938

Eliminated in quarter-finals.

1934

Eliminated in first round.

1930

Eliminated in first round.