CARDIFF, Wales (Interstat) — France’s under-19 women’s football team mounted a second-half comeback to secure a 3-2 victory over Finland in a UEFA U19 Championship qualification match on Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025.

The match, played at Cardiff International Sports Stadium, saw Finland take a surprising two-goal lead before a rapid French response and a late winner overturned the deficit.

Finland’s substitutes provided an immediate impact to stun the favored French side. Aada Mäkelä opened the scoring in the 28th minute, giving the visitors a lead they would carry toward halftime. The advantage was doubled in first-half stoppage time when another Finnish substitute, Helmi Kumpulainen, found the net in the 45th plus one minute.

Facing a two-goal deficit, France needed a swift response after the break and found it almost immediately. Ornella Graziani scored just two minutes into the second half, in the 47th minute, to cut the lead in half and shift the momentum.

Finland restored its two-goal cushion in the 72nd minute through Olivia Ulenius, another player introduced from the bench, making it 2-1. However, France’s pressure eventually told. Almudena Sierra, a constant threat in the French attack, leveled the match in the 84th minute with a crucial goal, assisted by her own earlier play.

Sierra’s involvement was not without controversy, as she received a yellow card in the 76th minute for a foul.

The victory improves France U19’s record in the UEFA qualification campaign to one win and zero losses, while Finland begins its season with zero wins and one loss. The result defied the pre-match projection from Interstat, whose game simulator had forecast a 1-1 draw. The same statistical service gave France a 78.50 percent probability of winning based on its ELO rating system.

The match was part of the early group stage of the UEFA U19 Championship qualification process, which is being held across various venues in Europe.