@JeffKapellas there is an undocumented URL parameter you can use to not show the popup when using a url param. If you append urlParamAsFilter=true to the url then it will filter the map to show all the features that match the input value. So in this example it will only show France and will not display the popup.
https://arcgis-devlabs.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/media/index.html?appid=a19e8b077e2d45168847f8226...
We do have plans to make this a configuration option but haven't yet done so. If you don't want to append it as a URL param you could use a tool like AGO Assistant to edit the app's data and add that value set to true. To do this you log into the tool then select the item application from the list and chose the {} option in the table to edit the items data. Once in edit mode click the Data tab and find the "values" section and add this option. Attached is an example of how that would look. It's a good idea to practice these steps on a copy of your app before editing the real version.
