France vs Morocco LIVE: FIFA World Cup 2026 quarterfinal

Live Match,

Published On 9 Jul 2026

• Tournament favourites France face Morocco – the first African side to reach a World Cup semifinal four years ago – in the quarterfinal of the 2026 edition.
• The match at Boston Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts, the United States, kicks off at 4pm (20:00 GMT).

48 Updates

• Tough conditions

  Loud whistles and jeers from the Moroccan fans as France start by passing the ball around the back.

  It’s a boiling hot day in Boston and the pitch is bathed in sunshine.

  2 mins: France 0-0 Morocco 

• Kickoff

  Morocco, in red shirts and green shorts, kick things off in Boston.

  France are in all-white.

  Here we go.

  Kickoff: France 0-0 Morocco 

• All-Argentine officials

  There have been some eyebrows raised about the decision to appoint an all Argentine line-up to officiate this one.

  Facundo Tello is the man in the middle today.

• Morocco anthem wraps up

  Plenty of passion on display from fans and players alike as Morocco’s anthem rings around the Boston stadium.

  There’s a flash of colour once the anthems end, with a pyrotechnic version of the French and Moroccan flags.

• National anthems

  The players are out and have made their way to the centre circle to line up for the anthems.

  La Marseillaise is up first.

• A Morocco fan’s view

  Morocco fan Salman Benzid thinks it’s the Atlas Lions’ day to roar.

  “We are going to win 3-2, with Brahim Diaz scoring the winning goal,” he told Al Jazeera.

  

• Players in the tunnel

  A lot of focused faces as the players prepare to make their way out on to the pitch in Boston.

  It’s a hot and sunny afternoon.

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• Two changes for Morocco

  Ismael Saibari is out with a hamstring injury and Redouane Halhal drops down to the bench as Mohamed Ouahbi makes two changes to his line-up.

  Chemsdine Talbi and Anass Salah-Eddine come in for the Atlas Lions.

  Morocco XI: Yassine Bounou (goalkeeper); Achraf Hakimi (captain), Issa Diop, Noussair Mazraoui, Anass Salah-Eddine; Ayyoub Bouaddi, Neil El Aynaoui; Chemsdine Talbi, Azzedine Ounahi, Bilal El Khannouss; Brahim Diaz.

• Team news reminder

  Not long now until the first World Cup 2026 quarterfinal kicks off in Boston.

  With ten minutes to go, here is a quick refresher on the team news.

  We’ll start with France and Desire Doue comes into the team with Bradley Barcola dropping down to the bench.

  Aurelien Tchouameni remains among the subs due to an adductor [thigh muscle] injury he sustained before the Round of 16.

  France XI: Mike Maignan (goalkeeper); Jules Kounde, Dayot Upamecano, William Saliba, Lucas Digne; Manu Kone, Adrien Rabiot; Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise, Desire Doue; Kylian Mbappe (captain)

• France vs Morocco: Head-to-head

  They have met six times, with France winning four matches while two ended in a draw. Could this be Morocco’s first win?

• France vs Morocco poll

  There are only 10 minutes left to vote in our poll ahead of the match:

• France vs Morocco prediction

  The Opta supercomputer gives France a 61.7 percent likelihood of winning in regulation time – Morocco’s chances of winning are 16.2 percent.

  The model estimates a 22.1 percent probability of the game going to extra time.

• Reporting from Boston Stadium

  Morocco carries the flag for the Arab world

  Fans from Egypt and the rest of the Arab world have spent the past couple of days coping with the Pharaoh’s loss to Argentina on Monday.

  But now, it is all eyes on Morocco. And the Moroccan supporters are aware of the weight of expectation pinned on them.

  Ghufran, a Moroccan fan who only gave her first name, told me last night that come kickoff time all Arab nations will be behind the Atlas Lions.

  “We must use the World Cup as a means to express our opinion on what’s happening around the world,” she said in the midst of a Moroccan party at Boston Common.

  “Egypt did a great job of raising the Palestinian flag and highlighting the cause. We must all do the same.”

  

• What the Morocco camp had to say

  “We’re no longer a surprise today, and that’s a great source of pride,” said Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi, who took over four months ago.

  “I think this is only the beginning and I hope we’ll keep producing this kind of run for many years.”

• A look at Morocco

  World-class winger Brahim Diaz has been one of Morocco’s heroes at the World Cup, thanks to his four assists, while striker Ismael Saibari leads the goal-scoring charts with three. Soufiane Rahimi and Azzedine Ounahi have also contributed, with two goals apiece.

  Saibari, who scored in each of the three group games and struck the winning penalty against the Dutch, has been ruled out of the quarterfinal, dealing a huge blow to Morocco.

  The 25-year-old, one of the standout players of the tournament, came off early in the first half in the last game with a hamstring injury and has not recovered in time to face France.