Gangnam Style in Mexico City

Starting line-ups for the World Cup third place playoff between Belgium and England in Saint Petersburg on Saturday (1400 GMT kick-off):

Belgium (3-4-3)

Thibaut Courtois; Toby Alderweireld, Vincent Kompany, Jan Vertonghen; Thomas Meunier, Axel Witsel, Youri Tielemans, Nacer Chadli; Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard (capt)

Coach: Roberto Martinez (ESP)

England (3-5-2)

Jordan Pickford; Phil Jones, John Stones, Harry Maguire; Kieran Trippier, Eric Dier, Fabian Delph, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Danny Rose; Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane (capt)

Coach: Gareth Southgate (ENG)

Referee: Alireza Faghani (IRI)

Newspapers and TV stations hailed France's World Cup victory on Monday, while clean-up crews worked against the clock to tidy up after a crazy night's partying in Paris ahead of a victory parade down the Champs Elysees.

"Our Day of Glory Is Here" declared Le Figaro, referencing a rousing line from the Marseillaise anthem.

"History Made" announced sports daily L'Equipe, while business journal Les Echos went for the more straightforward "Champions of the World". Photos of superstars Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Paul Pogba, as well as shots of the team holding aloft and kissing the trophy, dominated coverage.

The victory has created a sense of national unity, with commentators playing up the fact the squad, the second-youngest in the competition, includes many with central and north African heritage, even if all but two were born in France.

When the country won its first World Cup in 1998, when Zinedine Zidane was its talisman and playmaker, the team was referred to as "Black-Blanc-Beur" (Black-White-Arab), a positive reference to its diverse ethnic make-up.

Gallery: France fans celebrate

But some were keen to push that phrase to one side, seeing in it a sense of separateness, even if it was meant positively.

"We're not in 1998," said Mounir Mahjoubi, the secretary of state for digital affairs, whose parents emigrated from Morocco.

"We're not still celebrating 'Black-Blanc-Beur', we're celebrating brotherhood," he said of the current team.

Videos shot by the players in the frenetic changing room after the win showed them singing, dancing and raising a toast together, while teaching President Emmanuel Macron, who could barely contain his excitement, how to do a "dab".

METRO STATIONS

For Macron, who became president last year at the age of 39, taking his political movement to victory against the odds, the football team's success is likely to have positive repercussions after a slump in the polls.

The Paris metro system got into the celebratory mood, announcing the names of a number of stations were being briefly changed to honour the players and coach, Didier Deschamps.

So Notre-Dame des Champs station was relabelled "Notre Didier Deschamps", and Victor Hugo was switched to "Victor Hugo Lloris" after the captain and goalkeeper.

The 2 km Champs Elysees, the Arc de Triomphe and the vast Place de la Concorde turned into a heaving sea of people on Sunday night, waving red, white and blue flags, setting off firecrackers and blowing horns until early morning.

On Monday, the after-effects were still visible. A number of smashed windows, an overturned car and graffiti scrawled here and there, including the phrase "Liberte, Egalite, Mbappe", a reference to the national motto "Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite".

On Twitter, Brazil legend Pele paid tribute to the exploits of Mbappe, France's standout, 19-year-old superstar, saying that if the teenager kept equalling his goal-scoring records, Pele might have to strap his boots back on.

Mbappe replied to the tweet in English saying "The king will always remain the king", quickly gaining 15,000 retweets.

The team is scheduled to arrive back in France at 1400 GMT, with crowds set to gather at Charles de Gaulle airport to receive them. A parade down the Champs Elysees is scheduled for 1530 GMT, and there will be a formal victory reception with Macron at the Elysee Palace at 1630 GMT.

And it's not just in Paris that the nation has been taken over with football fever. From Nice and Marseille in the south to Lille in the north, Nantes in the west and scores of towns and cities in between, TV stations were full of images of red, white and blue clad fans singing in streets and squares.

Argentina's and Mexico's big and boisterous fan bases were out in force on Friday as one of Latin American football's biggest rivalries spiced up the World Cup ahead of their latest clash.

Thousands of flag-draped supporters of both sides have made the huge journey to Qatar and arguably been the liveliest presence, organising street parties and teaching Spanish-language chants to Arab fans eager to join in.

"They are the craziest and the best! This is exactly what we were waiting for," said Ibrahim Hussain, a Saudi Arabian wearing a Lionel Messi shirt, as he watched Argentines and Mexicans banter good-naturedly on the Qatari capital Doha's sea-front.

Saturday night's Group C match at the Lusail Stadium is, however, a deadly serious matter for both.

Argentina began their World Cup with a shock 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in a disastrous start for Messi's fifth and final attempt to win the one big trophy that has eluded him.

Mexico, eliminated in the last 16 at the previous seven World Cups, scraped a 0-0 draw with Poland in their opener.

So both need a win to get their tournament going and match the enthusiasm of their fans.

ARGENTINE NEMESIS

"Argentina have always trod on us and they look down on us. That has to change. Today is the day to rewrite our history with them," said Guillermo Sanchez, 44, from Mexico City, sporting a wide-brimmed sombrero along with friends.

Argentina are indeed something of a nemesis for Mexico, having beaten them in all three previous World Cup encounters stretching back to a 6-3 win at the inaugural 1930 competition then last-16 victories in 2006 and 2010.

Though fans of both nations have drawn plenty of admiring attention - and endless selfies - in Qatar since the tournament started, the rivalry went too far earlier this week.

Social media videos showed Mexican fans provoking Argentines with insults over top scorer Messi and their Falkands War defeat to Britain. That led to some street brawling that left some fans bleeding and injured, according to the footage and photos.

"It's OK for the Mexicans to have a joke with us, we can take that. But they are not in the same football league as Argentina," laughed Jessica Martinez, a 33-year-old sales assistant travelling with friends from Buenos Aires.

"Remind me, how many World Cups have Mexico won? Oh yes - none! How many have Argentina won? Two for now, but three by the end of this tournament - you watch!"

Mexico became the world's first country to allow voters to elect judges at all levels on Wednesday, after protesters invaded the upper house and suspended debate on the issue.

Outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador had pushed hard for the reform and criticized the current judicial system for serving the interests of the political and economic elite.

The reform was approved with 86 votes in favor and 41 against, garnering the two-thirds majority needed to amend the constitution, in an upper chamber dominated by the ruling Morena party and its allies.

Debate on the reform had sparked mass demonstrations, diplomatic tensions and investor jitters.

Senate leader Gerardo Fernandez Norona declared a recess after demonstrators stormed the upper house and entered the chamber, chanting "The judiciary will not fall."

Lawmakers were forced to move to a former Senate building, where they resumed their debate as demonstrators outside shouted "Mr. Senator, stop the dictator!"

Obrador, who wanted the bill approved before he is replaced by close ally Claudia Sheinbaum on October 1, said that protesters were protecting the interests of the political elite.

"What most worries those who are against this reform is that they will lose their privileges, because the judiciary is at the service of the powerful, at the service of white-collar crime," the leftist leader said at a news conference.

'Demolition of the judiciary'

Opponents, including court employees and law students, have held a series of protests against the plan, under which even Supreme Court and other high-level judges, as well as those at the local level, would be chosen by popular vote.

Around 1,600 judges would have to stand for election in 2025 or 2027.

"This does not exist in any other country," said Margaret Satterthwaite, United Nations special rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers.

"In some countries, such as the US, some state judges are elected, and in others, such as in Bolivia, high-level judges are elected," she told AFP.

Mexico's overhaul puts it "in a unique position in terms of its method for judicial selection," Satterthwaite said ahead of the vote.

In an unusual public warning, Supreme Court chief justice Norma Pina said that elected judges could be more vulnerable to pressure from criminals, in a country where powerful drug cartels regularly use bribery and intimidation to influence officials.

"The demolition of the judiciary is not the way forward," she said in a video released on Sunday.

Pina said last week that the top court would discuss whether it has jurisdiction to halt the reforms, though Lopez Obrador has said there is no legal basis for it to do so.

The reforms were passed last week in the lower house by ruling party lawmakers and their allies, who were forced to gather in a sports center because access to Congress was blocked by protesters.

'Dangerous proposals'

The United States, Mexico's main trading partner, has warned that the reforms would threaten a relationship that relies on investor confidence in the Mexican legal framework.

The changes could pose "a major risk" to Mexican democracy and enable criminals to exploit "politically motivated and inexperienced judges," US Ambassador Ken Salazar said last month.

Financial market analysts say investor concerns about the reforms have contributed to a sharp fall in the value of the Mexican currency, the peso, which has hit a two-year low against the dollar.

Satterthwaite has also voiced "deep concerns" about the plan, calling access to an independent and impartial judiciary "a human right essential for protecting rights and checking power abuses."

"Without strong safeguards to guard against the infiltration of organized crime (in the judicial selection process), an election system may become vulnerable to such powerful forces," she warned.

Human Rights Watch had urged lawmakers to reject what it called the "dangerous proposals," saying they would "seriously undermine judicial independence and contravene international human rights standards."

France and Croatia go into Sunday's World Cup final in Moscow with the same starting line-ups as in their semi-final wins over Belgium and England respectively.

Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann support Olivier Giroud in attack in France's 4-2-3-1 formation, while Ivan Perisic and Ivan Strinic, who had been pre-match injury doubts, have been passed fit for Croatia.

Perisic was the star of Croatia's 2-1 extra-time victory over England at the same Luzhniki Stadium on Wednesday, scoring his country's equaliser and then setting up the winner for Mario Mandzukic.

Croatia are in their first ever final, while France are aiming to win the trophy for the second time, after beating Brazil 3-0 in the final as hosts in 1998.

France beat Belgium 1-0 in the semi-final with a Samuel Umtiti goal in the second half.

Starting line-ups for the World Cup final between France and Croatia at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on Sunday (1500 GMT kick-off):

France (4-3-3)

Hugo Lloris (capt); Benjamin Pavard, Raphael Varane, Samuel Umtiti, Lucas Hernandez; Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kante; Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann, Blaise Matuidi; Olivier Giroud

Coach: Didier Deschamps (FRA)

Croatia (4-3-3)

Danijel Subasic; Sime Vrsaljko, Dejan Lovren, Domagoj Vida, Ivan Strinic; Luka Modric (capt), Marcelo Brozovic, Ivan Rakitic; Ante Rebic, Mario Mandzukic, Ivan Perisic

Coach: Zlatko Dalic (CRO)

Referee: Nestor Pitana (ARG)