Ousmane Dembélé once again lived up to his status as a Ballon d’Or champion by firing a World Cup 2026 hat-trick at Norway’s expense.

It was the fourth of his career, with an odd quirk emerging that two of them occurred within a three-day period.

Let’s revisit the occasions when the PSG and France forward downed opponents with a one-two-three combination…

Rennes v Nantes, Ligue 1 (6 March 2016)

Making his professional debut just five months prior, the 18-year-old was already making waves, with six Ligue 1 goals to his name.

This game though took the hype and expectation into another stratosphere.

It began almost from kick-off, with Rennes quickly winning a free-kick out wide. The subsequent delivery was half-cleared to the teen who controlled the ball well just outside the box. An unorthodox, poked volley arced into the net with mere seconds on the clock.

His second was more routine, though clinical, nonetheless.

Just before half-time Dembélé added a third, breaking at pace with only the last defender in attendance.

After a neat cut inside, the striker cleverly wrong-footed the keeper with a near-post finish.

Stuttgart v PSG, Champions League (29 January 2025)

Five months after this fixture, PSG were crowned champions of Europe, demolishing Inter Milan in the final.

That memorable event would not have occurred without Dembélé heading to Germany in ruthless form.

Poor results in the League Phase meant this was a must-win for the Parisiens and they wasted little time in manifesting a victory, Bradley Barcola opening proceedings early on.

Soon after, the winger turned provider, teeing up Dembélé with a simple tap-in.

Twenty minutes later the contest was over when the 27-year-old found the tightest of angles from down the right. The power and accuracy in his shot was everything.

A wonderful team effort brought the player his hat-trick, intricate passing resulting in a curled effort beating Fabian Bredlow in nets.

Brest v PSG, Ligue 1 (1 February 2025)

Over three thousand days separated the forward’s first two hat-tricks. We only had to wait 72 hours more for another to land.

Dembélé’s third was the pick of the trio, though in truth all were dispatched with relative ease as Brest were ruthlessly dismantled. The 6-1 scoreline says it all.

PSG’s springtime thrashing came in the middle of a particularly prosperous period for the forward. Between mid-December and early-March he fired 16 goals in 11 games in the league alone.

France v Norway, World Cup group stage (26 June 2026)

Kylian Mbappe took the headlines in France’s opening two World Cup outings. Now it was the turn of his fellow esteemed attacker who blasted an unstoppable shot into the far corner just seven minutes in.

With Norway still reeling, Dembélé executed an altogether different type of finish to attain a second, cutting in and curling a delightful effort with his left.

Feted for being equally impactful with both feet, this was a perfect illustration on the global stage.

On 32 minutes, the inner side-netting was located again, the forward becoming the 53rd player to achieve a World Cup hat-trick.

It was all done inside half an hour.