Stephen A. Smith was left ruing an embarrassing moment after he suggested that France might be able to win the World Cup for the first time.
That would prove to be an impossible situation given that they have already won it twice (1998 and 2018), but Smith believes that it could happen.
Speaking on ESPN’s “First Take” on Wednesday 17 June, the presenter then made a comparison between Kylian Mbappe and San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama.
Stephen A. Smith asks if France can ‘finally’ win the World Cup
Dissecting France’s 3-1 win against Senegal, Smith singled out Mbappe and asked if it would finally be his time.
He said: “For me, it’s about Mbappe for France. He scores two goals yesterday. OK, remember, he scored a hat-trick in the finals loss to Argentina in 2022. I’m wondering whether or not this is the year for France.
“I’m thinking about France because of Wemby and how he just went home in the NBA Finals. I’m wondering what France is going to do.
“Could this be the year that they finally get it done, and they win the World Cup? Considering Mbappe, and what we saw him do yesterday, and what we know he’s capable of doing, because he’s done it before.”
Stephen A. Smith cooked for Mbappe claim
Unsurprisingly, the internet was a cruel world for Smith, as users flocked to social media to remind him of the important statistic he forgot
One fan sarcastically said: “Hopefully Argentina and Messi can also finally get it done and win the World Cup. It’s been so long.”
Another commented: “It’s embarrassing for a sports network to be this indifferent in covering the world’s biggest sporting event…”
This person wrote: “I know Stephen A got his start covering (college)soccer. But the man really has no business talking about the sport at this level. Mad Dog just looks lost.”
“Ladies & gentlemen: the highest paid sports reporter, err analyst, err “personality” in America,” stated this person.
Meanwhile, this person said: “So who is going to tell him to google the 2018 World Cup winner?”
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