Belgium vs France Nations League Recap: Zidane's France Chase Another Win Over Belgium

France beat Belgium 1-0 in Brussels on Monday, September 28, 2026, with substitute Michael Olise scoring the only goal in the 88th minute. The result, at Stade Roi Baudouin, was Matchday 2 of UEFA Nations League League A, Group 1, and it kept Zinedine Zidane unbeaten in his first two matches in charge of France. Here’s what happened, who was missing, and what it means for the group.

Who won the Belgium vs France Nations League match?

France won 1-0, with Michael Olise breaking a scoreless deadlock in the 88th minute to give the visitors all three points. The match was played at Stade Roi Baudouin in Brussels and was the second of six Group A1 matchdays running from September through November 2026. France controlled long spells of the game without finding an early breakthrough, and it took a late strike to separate the two sides in what had been a tight, low-scoring contest for most of the night.

How did France score the winning goal?

Olise’s goal came with roughly two minutes left in regulation time, capping a match in which France had the better of the chances but struggled to convert. France finished with the larger share of possession and more shots on target across the 90 minutes, while Belgium’s best moments came in transition but produced few clear-cut opportunities. Three Belgian players picked up yellow cards over the course of the match — midfielders Youri Tielemans and Kevin De Bruyne, and defender Arthur Moreira — but no red cards were shown, and no VAR review changed the outcome.

Who was missing for each team?

Both sides were without key players. France traveled without captain Kylian Mbappé, who sat out with a knee issue after scoring the only goal in the team’s Matchday 1 win over Turkey days earlier. In his absence, Esteban Lepaul, Bradley Barcola and Désiré Doué started across the France front line, with Olise coming on to make the difference from the bench. Belgium was without forward Leandro Trossard (heel) and two longer-term absentees, winger Jérémy Doku and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, with Senne Lammens starting in goal in Courtois’s place.

How does this fit into Zinedine Zidane’s start as France coach?

It was Zidane’s second win in as many matches since taking over the France national team. The federation named Zidane head coach in late July 2026, succeeding Didier Deschamps after France finished fourth at the 2026 World Cup, having lost the third-place match to England. Zidane’s tenure opened with a 1-0 win over Turkey on Friday, September 25, 2026 — Mbappé’s goal in that game was his last contribution before the injury that kept him out against Belgium — and continued with this Brussels win. The result also extended a recent run of favorable results for France in this specific fixture, though the precise length of that streak is reported inconsistently across sources, so it isn’t pinned to an exact number here.

What does this result mean for the Group A1 standings?

France now leads Group A1 with 6 points from two wins, ahead of Belgium and Italy on 3 points apiece and Turkey on 0. Belgium had opened its own campaign with a 2-0 win over Italy on Matchday 1, while Italy responded on Matchday 2 with a 4-1 win over Turkey played the same day as the Brussels match. That result means Belgium’s Matchday 2 loss to France dropped it into a three-way tie on points with Italy, separated for now by goal difference, while Turkey remains without a point through two matches.

What’s next for Belgium and France?

These two teams face each other again soon, but not in this same window. The reverse fixture, with France hosting Belgium at Stade de France in Paris, is scheduled for Sunday, October 5, 2026 — a separate match in the same set of double-headers common to this stage of the Nations League, and one that will get its own recap rather than an update to this page. Group A1 play then continues into November, with both teams also facing Turkey and Italy before the league phase concludes. For a full rundown of how the group stage, quarterfinals and Finals fit together this season, see our guide to the 2026-27 Nations League format .

Monday’s result in Brussels was a tight, low-event affair decided by one moment of quality from a substitute, and it leaves France firmly in control of Group A1 as Zidane’s early tenure continues to take shape.