Lens Reach Coupe De France Final After 4-1 Win Over Toulouse In 2026 Semi-final

Lens moved into the Coupe de France final for the first time since 1998 after a 4-1 win over Toulouse at Stade Bollaert-Delelis, with Florian Thauvin starring as the hosts raced into a decisive early lead and kept their season-long momentum alive.

The victory sends Lens to a showpiece meeting with either Strasbourg or Nice, giving the club a chance to lift the Coupe de France for the first time, while the result also maintains belief within a squad already involved in a Ligue 1 title battle.

Across all competitions this season, Lens have now collected 24 wins, their second-highest total in any campaign this century after the 27 victories recorded in 2022-23, underlining how this Coupe de France run sits alongside a strong league push.

Lens controlled most aspects of the tie against Toulouse, generating 3.26 expected goals from 16 shots, 10 of those attempts hitting the target, while Toulouse managed seven efforts but registered only one on target, showing how the scoreline reflected clear superiority.

The breakthrough arrived in the ninth minute after a VAR review, when Pape Diop fouled Thauvin inside the box, and Thauvin then took responsibility from the spot, sending a composed penalty into the left corner as Kjetil Haug dived the wrong way.

Lens doubled the advantage in the 18th minute as Thauvin carried the ball down the right side and picked out Allan Saint-Maximin, who curled a fine right-footed effort into the far corner, giving the home side a two-goal cushion before the match had settled.

Toulouse hit back quickly, three minutes after Saint-Maximin’s strike, when Lens lost possession near their own area, and Emersonn seized on the error before slipping in Santiago Hidalgo, whose low finish rolled into the bottom-right corner to give the visitors brief hope.

Lens restored the two-goal gap in the 35th minute as Saud Abdulhamid drove to the byline on the right and squared across the six-yard box, leaving Matthieu Udol free to tap in from close range and reassert control before half-time.

After the interval, Lens started sharply again, with Odsonne Edouard dragging one effort wide, yet the tempo then dropped for a spell, until the hosts added a fourth goal on 74 minutes from a set-piece situation to underline their dominance.

Thauvin’s curling free-kick forced a diving save from Haug, who could only push the ball away into a dangerous area, and Abdulhamid reacted quickest to square for Adrien Thomasson, presenting an empty net and another straightforward finish for the attacking midfielder.

The atmosphere around the club’s progress to the Coupe de France final was reflected on social media after the match, with Lens highlighting the noise at Stade Bollaert-Delelis and the anticipation for the showpiece occasion.

The underlying numbers from this semi-final highlight how efficiently Lens handled the contest at both ends of the pitch, turning pressure into goals while denying Toulouse clear chances during a performance that keeps the club in contention for a historic double.

With a Coupe de France final ahead and the Ligue 1 race still active, Lens now stand within reach of adding a first national cup to a strong modern record, having combined attacking fluency, defensive control and big-game composure throughout this campaign.