France face Morocco in World Cup quarter-final with semi-final spot at stake

France and Morocco clash in the 2026 World Cup quarter-finals at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts on Wednesday, July 9, with kick-off set for 9pm UK time (4pm local). The winner earns a place in the semi-finals on Tuesday, July 14 at Dallas Stadium in Texas.

Didier Deschamps’ France side reached the last eight with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Paraguay in the Round of 16, a second-half penalty from captain Kylian Mbappé proving the decisive moment in Philadelphia.

Morocco, meanwhile, made history by becoming the first African nation to reach back-to-back World Cup quarter-finals after a commanding 3-0 win over co-hosts Canada in Houston. The Atlas Lions’ run mirrors their remarkable 2022 campaign, when they went all the way to the semi-finals before falling to France.

That previous meeting in Qatar looms large over tonight’s fixture. France won 2-0 at the semi-final stage in 2022, with goals from Theo Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani, and Deschamps’ side will be looking to replicate that result on an even bigger stage.

Players from both squads will face demanding conditions in Foxborough, with temperatures expected to reach 32°C at kick-off.

The winner will face either Spain or Belgium in the semi-final. Spain eliminated Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal 1-0 in the last 16, while Belgium knocked out co-hosts USA with an emphatic 4-1 victory.