France fans and Iraqi supporters gathered outside Philadelphia Stadium on Monday despite heavy rain and a long storm delay before France's World Cup group-stage match against Iraq.
Footage shows fans outside the stadium waving national flags, cheering and playing musical instruments. Some can be seen wearing team shirts, while others have French and Iraqi flags painted across their faces.
"We're going to have some fun tonight," one attendee said.
Iraqi supporters arrived with plenty of belief, saying their defence could handle France's attacking threat and the world-famous pace of captain Kylian Mbappe.
"It's going to be a big, big chance for Iraq to get equalised at one-one. And hopefully, if Mbappe didn't score or Dembele… Dembele is a very good player," Muhammad said.
France made the decisive breakthrough after the restart, with Mbappe scoring twice before Ousmane Dembele completed a 3-0 win that secured their place in the Round of 32.
"There is a beautiful, beautiful victory. It was a long match. The half-time. The longest, I think, in the history of the World Cup. But there you go, it went well. Objective achieved, a victory and a second victory," a French fan said.
The match made history after severe thunder and lightning forced a delay of more than two hours. Play was halted after the first half, with supporters told to leave open seating areas and shelter in covered parts of the stadium.
France's 3-0 win gave them a second straight victory and a place in the knockout rounds. Iraq, playing their second match of the tournament, were left chasing a result after a weather-hit night that stretched deep into the evening.
Follow us on:
WhatsApp cutt.ly/WhatsAppCFM
https://twitter.com/capitalfmkenya/
https://www.facebook.com/capitalfmkenya
https://www.instagram.com/capitalfmkenya
Subscribe to Capital FM News for More: https://goo.gl/um4AGk
98.4 Capital FM
93.0 Western Kenya
98.5 Nakuru and Nyeri
104.5 Malindi
102.7 Garissa
103.9 Meru
106.5 Kitui
104.9 Voi
#CapitalFmKenya
