France progressed to the last 16 as winners of Group E after a goalless draw at the Maracana against ten-man Ecuador, who were knocked out of the tournament following Switzerland's win against Honduras.
Didier Deschamps' side were left frustrated by Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez but will now battle it out with Nigeria for a place in the quarter-finals on Monday.
Dominguez produced some fine saves to deny Paul Pogba's first-half header and efforts from Antoine Griezmann and Loic Remy after the break.
Enner Valencia came closest to scoring for Ecuador in the first half but their hopes of going through were dealt a blow when captain Antonio Valencia was sent off early in the second half for a reckless challenge on Lucas Digne.
Following the first two rounds of fixtures, France had been joint top scorers at this summer's World Cup alongside the Netherlands with eight goals.
And once again they started on the front foot, although they struggled to create any clear cut chances in the opening exchanges.
They were perhaps fortunate to keep 11 players on the field when Liverpool defender Mamadou Sakho elbowed Oswaldo Minda at a French corner in the seventh minute but the incident was missed by referee Noumandiez Doue.
It took 15 minutes for the first real effort on goal to arrive, Newcastle midfielder Moussa Sissoko firing a volley straight at Dominguez, who saved easily.
On 20 minutes, Ecuador almost capitalized on an error in midfield by Blaise Matuidi but Hugo Lloris was alert to collect Valencia's attempted through ball to Jefferson Montero.
The chance helped Ecuador grow in confidence and Valencia shot wide from an acute angle after latching onto a long ball before Michael Arroyo's attempted cross to the front man was easily claimed by Lloris.
France almost opened the scoring on 38 minutes when Pogba met Griezmann's free-kick with a strong header that looked destined for the top corner, until Dominguez produced an acrobatic save to tip it over the bar.
Three minutes later, Ecuador produced their best moment of the match so far. Arroyo worked space on the left hand side and delivered a cross to the far post where Valencia climbed highest, but his downward header was saved by the legs of Lloris.
With Switzerland beating Honduras, Ecuador knew they needed a win to progress but it was France who had the first chance of the second half, with Dominguez producing a magnificent reaction save to tip Griezmann's shot onto the post from point-blank range.
And Ecuador's job was made harder when Manchester United winger Valencia was dismissed for a studs-up challenge on left back Digne on 50 minutes.
But despite their reduced numbers, Ecuador almost went ahead moments later as they broke quickly after France lost the ball in midfield but Christian Noboa sliced his shot horribly wide from the edge of the box after receiving Valencia's pass.
By now the game was end-to-end with Montero hitting a shot into the side netting before Noboa threw himself in front of a powerful Pogba shot and Dominguez was forced into action again by Matuidi.
Pogba missed a glorious chance on 73 minutes when he was picked out at the far post by Bacary Sagna but, under no pressure, the 21-year-old put his header wide.
With Ecuador needing two goals in the final ten minutes, Arroyo shot wildly wide after another Ecuador break before Lloris saved from substitute Alex Ibarra.
Dominguez kept his side in the game with yet another save from Karim Benzema, who was unable to add to his three goals so far in the tournament, and a full length stretch to deny substitute Remy but they were unable to get the goals they required to progress.
Ecuador 0
France 0
Referee: Noumandiez Doue (Ivory Coast)
Attendance: 73,749
Ecuador (4-4-2): Dominguez, Paredes, Guagua, Erazo, Ayovi, A Valencia, Minda, Noboa (Caicedo 89), Montero (Ibarra 63), Arroyo (Achilier 82), E Valencia
Subs not used: Banguera, Mendez, Rojas, Ayovi, Bagui, Saritama, Martinez, Gruezo, Bone
France (4-3-3): Lloris, Sagna, Koscielny, Sakho (Varane 61), Digne, Pogba, Scneiderlin, Matuidi (Giroud 66), Sissoko, Griezmann (Remy 79), Benzema
Subs not used: Ruffier, Debuchy, Evra, Cabaye, Cabella, Valbuena, Mavuba, Mangala, Landreau
