July 9 (THEWILL) — France booked their place in the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a convincing 2-0 victory over Morocco on Thursday, ending the Atlas Lions’ impressive campaign and keeping alive their quest for a third world title.
Kylian Mbappé was once again the driving force behind Didier Deschamps’ side, scoring the opening goal before creating the second for Ousmane Dembélé as France proved too strong for the African side at Boston Stadium.
The quarter-final was a repeat of the 2022 World Cup semi-final, and like that meeting in Qatar, France emerged victorious to deny Morocco another place among the tournament’s final four.
Morocco, who were without injured forward Ismael Saibari, frustrated France for much of the opening half with a disciplined defensive display. The Atlas Lions limited clear opportunities despite facing sustained pressure, while goalkeeper Yassine Bounou produced another composed performance between the posts.
France came closest to breaking the deadlock before halftime when Lucas Digne’s powerful long-range strike crashed against the crossbar, with Bounou appearing to get a slight touch to the ball.
The breakthrough finally arrived in the 60th minute. Mbappé, who had earlier seen a penalty saved, made amends with a superb curling finish into the far corner to hand Les Bleus a deserved lead.
The goal marked the French captain’s 20th career World Cup strike and took his tally at the tournament to eight, drawing level in the race for the Golden Boot.
France doubled their advantage just six minutes later. Mbappé turned provider, picking out Dembélé with a perfectly weighted pass before the winger calmly curled his effort beyond Bounou to put the contest beyond Morocco.
The Atlas Lions struggled to trouble France’s defence throughout the evening, registering their first shot on target only in the 83rd minute when Azzedine Ounahi tested the French goalkeeper. Moments later, Neil El Aynaoui glanced a header into the side netting from the resulting corner, but it proved too little, too late.
France dominated the contest from start to finish, creating the better opportunities and controlling the game’s decisive moments as they marched into a third consecutive World Cup semi-final.
Despite the defeat, Morocco can reflect on another memorable campaign after becoming the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi-final in 2022 and following it up with another impressive run to the last eight. Their performance provides further encouragement ahead of co-hosting the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
France will now turn their attention to the semi-finals as they continue their pursuit of another World Cup crown.
