Tessa Lee, Sports journalist reporting on global leagues since 2021.
France suffered a surprise 2 to 1 defeat against Ivory Coast in a World Cup warm up match in Nantes on Thursday, while Graham Arnold's Iraq earned an impressive 1 to 1 draw against European champions Spain. The results come less than two weeks before the World Cup begins and offer early warning signs for several tournament favourites preparing for their opening fixtures.
France entered the match as heavy favourites but were undone by a spirited Ivory Coast performance, while Spain failed to break down an Iraqi side preparing for its first World Cup appearance since 1986.
Elsewhere, Iran completed its preparations with victory over Mali as visa concerns continue ahead of travel to North America.
Ivory Coast stun World Cup contenders France
France captain Kylian Mbappe entered his 97th international appearance with the chance to equal or surpass Olivier Giroud's all time national scoring record.
Instead, the forward endured a quiet evening and was substituted at half time by coach Didier Deschamps after failing to add to his tally of 56 international goals.
France appeared on track for victory after Rayan Cherki opened the scoring just before half time.
The attacking midfielder created space inside the penalty area before firing a powerful low strike past the goalkeeper.
Ivory Coast responded strongly after the interval.
Guela Doue, the French born defender and older brother of France international Desire Doue, equalised in the 53rd minute.
Manchester United winger Amad Diallo then delivered the decisive moment.
After entering as a second half substitute, Diallo reacted quickest inside the box to score six minutes from full time and secure a famous victory for the Elephants.
France now turns attention to a final warm up against Northern Ireland in Lille before opening its World Cup campaign against Senegal on June 16 in East Rutherford.
Arnold's Iraq frustrate European champions
Spain controlled possession throughout much of its match against Iraq but could not convert dominance into victory.
Coach Luis de la Fuente selected a heavily rotated side and handed international debuts to seven players outside his World Cup squad.
Ferran Torres captained Spain and gave the hosts the lead after 16 minutes.
The forward looked lively throughout the opening half and struck the crossbar shortly before the interval.
Iraq responded through an unexpected source.
German born left back Merchas Doski delivered a dangerous cross that surprised goalkeeper Joan Garcia and found its way into the net after 27 minutes.
The goal proved enough for Iraq to secure a valuable draw.
The result represents another encouraging moment for coach Graham Arnold as Iraq prepares for its first World Cup appearance in four decades.
Iran complete preparations amid visa uncertainty
Iran ended its warm up schedule with a comfortable 2 to 0 victory over Mali in Turkey.
The team is scheduled to depart for its tournament base in Mexico on Saturday after finally receiving entry visas earlier this week.
However, questions remain regarding travel arrangements for matches in the United States.
Iran is still waiting for approval of US visas despite being scheduled to play all three group stage matches there.
Their campaign begins against New Zealand in Los Angeles on June 16.
Embolo cleared to join Switzerland squad
Switzerland also dealt with travel complications during the week.
Forward Breel Embolo had initially been unable to travel with the squad after his electronic travel authorisation entered review.
Swiss officials confirmed on Thursday that approval had now been granted.
The federation announced Embolo would fly on Friday and link up with teammates ahead of the tournament.
Travel logistics and visa complications have emerged as an unusual subplot ahead of the expanded World Cup, with several nations still finalising arrangements only days before the tournament begins.
With tournament kick off approaching rapidly, several major nations now face fresh questions after unexpected results during the final stage of preparation.