Can a World Cup final win heal France’s divisions?
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World Cup euphoria has spread over every inch of France and the small Alpine town of Annecy, in the country's southeast, is no exception.
With its pastel-colour facades and pristine lake, the ancient town never struggles to draw crowds in the summer.
But during Tuesday's semi-final, jovial punters draped in tricolours descended on the town, not to sight see, but to nab a decent vantage point at any bar or restaurant with a TV screen.
Almost immediately after Samuel Umtiti's goal cemented "Les Bleus" in the final, flares and fireworks shot off from the crowd who spilled out onto the cobbled streets to a chorus of "On est en le final".
Similar scenes, reminiscent of the elated celebrations of France's 1998 win, took place around the country.
Passengers hung precariously from car windows and drivers honked their horns relentlessly as they did laps.
It has been 20 years since France beat Brazil 3-0 but Annecy local Veronique Becchia, 29, remembers it well.
"It was incredible; I have not lived anything like that in the past 20 years," she said.
"People of all ages are crying of joy, so proud, happy, and party all night to make this feeling last longer."
Nathan Barrierre, 20, was working in one of the town's packed bars during the semi-final and watched the celebrations unfold.
"If France wins the final on Sunday it's going to be anarchy," he said.
"It went completely crazy, motorbikes did burnouts … there was a tractor carrying some fans with French flags."
Since 1998 France has made it into the finals once, in 2006, but missed out, losing to Italy by penalty shootout.
Veronique says it is about more than winning a tournament and partying.
"It is also the hope of having the country united and closer together," she said.
"There is no more differences between each other, we are all sharing the same event, the same title, the same proudness of being French."
The multicultural make up of the French team has a significant role to play in this too.
"We still have some race tensions in France and the fact the French team includes many cultures, I think it's very unifying for France, " Nathan said.
"They are representing France with their game as well as their values."
In contrast to the popularity enjoyed by the French team, President Emmanuel Macron's approval rating has plummeted to a new low in the polls.
But political commentators have not missed his attempts to latch onto the World Cup.
Mr Macron has done his upmost to show his love for the team, traveling to Saint Petersburg for the semi-final.
But it has been interpreted more so as an attempt to appear relatable and shake off his image as a president whose politics are seen to favour the rich, such as the governments recent welfare reforms.
Despite this, if France win, it is predicated Mr Macron's popularity could see a spike.
This was at least the case for then president Jacques Chirac who was in office during the 1998 win. His popularity increased by 15 points.
Businesses have also done what they can to cash in on World Cup mania and the consumer confidence that comes with it.
Shop fronts are decked out with flags and bunting and restaurants owners have splashed out on giant screens. Even chocolate shops and patisseries have got into the spirit with soccer-themed treats.
Axelle Lafourcriere, 19, works at a local patisserie but is too young to have experienced the frenzy of the 1998 win
She says the World Cup has given people something positive to hold onto with more recent events, including the attacks in Paris, still raw in the country's psyche.
"It will be great to be together as a nation for something other than bad news," she said.
She described the World Cup as a kind of "healing process" for race tensions in France.
"Because our team is representative of this diversity, everyone supports them and we all identify with them," she said.
"We're all the same at the end. We're all French, we all support the same thing.
"No matter what happens, it will be a good experience to have reached the final anyway."
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