By Desmond Nleya, Sports Reporter
BOSTON, United States – France and Morocco will renew their World Cup rivalry on Thursday in a highly anticipated quarterfinal clash at Boston Stadium in Foxborough, with a place in the semifinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at stake.
The match brings together one of the tournament’s traditional powerhouses and Africa’s reigning champions, with both sides arriving in strong form after impressive campaigns through the group and knockout stages.
France, champions in 1998 and 2018 and runners-up in 2022, have won all five of their matches so far. Didier Deschamps’s side has scored 14 goals and conceded only twice, underlining its status as one of the favourites to lift the trophy.
Leading the charge is Kylian Mbappe, who tops the Golden Boot standings with seven goals and two assists. Supported by Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola, France possess arguably the most dangerous attacking unit left in the competition.
Les Bleus topped Group I before defeating Sweden 3-0 in the round of 32 and edging Paraguay 1-0 in a physical round-of-16 encounter.
Morocco, meanwhile, have continued the remarkable progress that began with their historic semifinal run at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The Atlas Lions finished second in Group C behind Brazil, then eliminated the Netherlands in a penalty shootout before cruising past Canada 3-0 in the last 16.
Since winning the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco have gone 34 matches unbeaten and now enter the quarterfinals as genuine title contenders rather than surprise outsiders.
“We’re no longer a surprise today, and that’s a great source of pride,” Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi said ahead of the match.
Morocco will, however, be without striker Ismael Saibari, who has been ruled out with a hamstring injury. Saibari scored in all three group matches and converted the decisive penalty against the Netherlands, making his absence a significant blow.
Creative responsibility is expected to fall on Brahim Diaz, who has already provided four assists during the tournament, while Soufiane Rahimi is likely to lead the attack.
France assistant coach Guy Stephan warned that Morocco would present a very different challenge from Paraguay.
“They are a well-organised, well-structured team with quality in transition and strong individual players on both flanks,” he said.
The two nations last met in the semifinals of the 2022 World Cup, when France won 2-0. Overall, France have won four of the six meetings between the sides, with the remaining two ending in draws.
Opta’s supercomputer gives France a 61.7 percent chance of winning in regulation time, compared with 16.2 percent for Morocco, while the probability of extra time is estimated at 22.1 percent.
The winner of Thursday’s quarterfinal will face either Spain or Belgium in the semifinals in Dallas on July 14.
Kickoff is scheduled for 20:00 GMT.
