France booked their place in the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup after defeating Morocco 2-0 in their quarter-final clash in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Thursday.
Kylian Mbappe opened the scoring in the 60th minute before providing the assist for Ousmane Dembele to double France’s lead six minutes later, ending Morocco’s impressive World Cup campaign.
The victory keeps Les Bleus on course for a third FIFA World Cup title and a third consecutive appearance in the tournament final under head coach Didier Deschamps.
Mbappe recovered from an earlier setback after seeing his first-half penalty saved by Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou. The Real Madrid forward redeemed himself with a superb curling strike from outside the penalty area to break the deadlock.
The goal was Mbappe’s eighth of the tournament, drawing him level with Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot. He later set up Dembele, who calmly finished past Bounou to seal France’s victory before Mbappe was substituted late in the match.
France, champions in 2018 and runners-up in 2022, will face either Spain or Belgium in the semi-finals in Dallas.
Morocco, who became the first African nation to reach the World Cup semi-finals in 2022, once again impressed despite missing injured forward Ismael Saibari. However, the Atlas Lions struggled to convert their chances against a disciplined French defence, which recorded its third consecutive clean sheet in the knockout stage.
Mbappe continued his remarkable World Cup scoring record, taking his tally to 20 goals in 20 tournament appearances—just one behind Messi’s overall World Cup record of 21 goals.
France dominated much of the contest, although Bounou kept Morocco in the game with several key saves in the opening half, including denying Desire Doue before Lucas Digne struck the crossbar from long range.
The breakthrough eventually came shortly after the hour mark when Doue found Mbappe outside the penalty area, and the French captain curled a precise effort beyond Bounou.
Six minutes later, Mbappe released Dembele, who advanced into the box before slotting a low finish into the corner to put the result beyond doubt.
Despite the defeat, Morocco earned widespread praise for another strong World Cup showing and are expected to remain among Africa’s leading football nations ahead of co-hosting the 2030 FIFA World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal.
