There is a little-known "Curse of the Champions" that France will be desperate to avoid in Qatar.
The last three champions have failed to advance past the group stage at the following tournament.
Les Bleus come into the 2022 edition of the World Cup with some significant injury concerns.
Influential midfielders Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante are both suffering with long-term injuries which meant they did not even make the final 23 while Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema has suffered a thigh injury in training which looks set to rule him out of the entire tournament.
1,591 days after lifting the trophy aloft at the Luzhniki Stadium, Didier Deschamps' men will hope to get their defence of the title off to a perfect start.
The Socceroos will still have a monumental task to make anything out of Group D.
Football fans of generations past grew up watching an Australian side with the likes of Mark Schwarzer, Tim Cahill, Harry Kewell and Mark Viduka.
This year's squad do not have anywhere near the same amount of notable names with the bulk of the squad coming from the Scottish Premiership and EFL Championship.
The Aussies went viral back in June with their penalty shootout victory over Peru, secured by goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne, who came off the bench at the end of extra time.
They come into the tournament off the back of a double-header victory over rivals New Zealand in September.
This is the second tournament in a row these two have met with France coming out on top 2-1 in Kazan on their way to the title.
Team News
France
As previously mentioned, Didier Deschamps will be without messrs Pogba, Kante and Benzema, but this is not a squad without a depth of talent.
Real Madrid midfield talents Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni look likely to lead the midfield while the always-reliable and often-flamboyant Olivier Giroud will partner golden boy Kylian Mbappe.
Bayern Munich's Dayot Upamecano is expected to start at the heart of defence but his partner is still up in the air with Raphael Varane, Lucas Hernandez, Ibrahima Konate and William Saliba all vying for a starting role.
Antoine Griezmann was a key man in Russia four years ago but is more of a peripheral squad figure these days.
He is certainly not a bad option off the bench though.
Graham Arnold's men will be missing Scottish-born Hibernian striker Martin Boyle but, otherwise, look as close to full-strength as possible.
Stoke City defender Harry Souttar does not have many minutes under his belt since recovering from ACL surgery but should be fit enough to anchor the defence.
Newcastle United-bound hotshot Garang Kuol of Central Coast Mariners may push for a start in the absence of Boyle while Hellas Verona midfielder Ajdin Hrustic also looks to have shaken off his injury niggles.
Despite Redmayne's shootout heroics, former Brighton and Arsenal stopper Mat Ryan is still Arnold's preferred man between the sticks.
Likely Lineups
France: Lloris; Pavard; Upamecano; Konate; L. Hernandez; Tchouameni; Camavinga; Rabiot; Dembele; Mbappe; Giroud
Australia: Ryan; Atkinson; Wright; Souttar; Degenek; Behich; Irvine; Mooy; Hrustic; McGree; Leckie
Key Players
The man who is largely considered the heir to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi is the focal point of Deschamps' team.
At age 19 he guided his nation to success in Russia in 2018 and, four years later, it is hard to believe he is still just 23 and, perhaps a scary thought is that he may not have even reached his peak.
With Karim Benzema ruled out, even more of the spotlight will be on the Paris Saint-Germain forward as he looks to guide his side to back-to-back World Cups.
The former Huddersfield and Brighton man is experiencing a sort of career resurgence under his countryman Ange Postecoglu at Celtic and will be the key cog in this Aussie machine.
He will be the creative force for the Green and Golds, and his nation's fortunes will hinge largely on his performances.
His service and link-up with Matthew Leckie up front will be crucial if Arnold's men are to take anything from this group.
It will certainly be an uphill battle but Mooy could be the man to inspire his nation.
Match Details
Where is the game being played?
The game is being played at the Al Janoub Stadium in Al Wakrah
What time is kick-off?
Kick-off is at 7pm UK time
Where can I watch?
The game is live on BBC One for fans in the UK.