First half — Morocco held firm through a tense opening 45. The moment of the half: Mbappé's penalty was saved, keeping the Atlas Lions level at the break and the huge Moroccan crowd in Foxborough believing.
60' — Mbappé 1–0. The Real Madrid star made amends with a curling finish into the far corner — his 8th goal of the tournament.
66' — Dembélé 2–0. Six minutes later Mbappé turned provider, laying the ball into Dembélé's path for a low curled finish past the keeper. Game over.
Full time — France advance to a third straight World Cup semifinal. For the second tournament running, it's France who end Morocco's run — 2–0, the same scoreline as the 2022 semifinal in Qatar.
| Stage | What happened |
|---|---|
| Group stage | Unbeaten — Ouahbi's side extended their long unbeaten streak and topped their group |
| Round of 16 | Canada 0–3 Morocco in Houston (68,777) — Ounahi brace, Rahimi, and Brahim Diaz's African-record 4th assist. Match report → |
| Quarterfinal | France 2–0 Morocco, Boston Stadium, July 9 — eliminated by the eventual semifinalists |
| The big picture | 2022 semifinal + 2026 quarterfinal — back-to-back deep runs no African nation had ever produced |
Under coach Mohamed Ouahbi, with captain Achraf Hakimi leading from the back and Brahim Diaz rewriting the assist records, this generation confirmed that 2022 was no miracle — it was a baseline. Thank you, Atlas Lions. The road now leads home: Morocco co-hosts the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal, and the next chapter gets written in Casablanca, Rabat, Tangier, Marrakech, Fez and Agadir.
| Match | When | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 🇫🇷 France vs 🇪🇸 Spain — Semifinal 1 | Tue July 14 · 3:00pm ET | Dallas Stadium, Arlington TX |
| 🏴 England vs 🇦🇷 Argentina — Semifinal 2 | Wed July 15 · 3:00pm ET | Atlanta Stadium, Atlanta GA |
| 🏆 Final | Sun July 19 | New York New Jersey Stadium (MetLife), East Rutherford NJ |
For the first time ever, the top four teams in the FIFA rankings all made the World Cup semifinals. Morocco's conqueror France now faces Spain — Brahim Diaz's other footballing home.
The night the Atlas Lions roared in Houston: Ounahi brace, Rahimi, Diaz's record assist.
Read →France 2–0 in Qatar. Four years later, the same script.
Read →The key battles we called before kickoff in Boston.
Read →Morocco kept him quiet for an hour. Then came the hour mark.
Read →The red-and-green wall of Foxborough — the real winners of the night.
Read →Semifinals, the road to the July 19 final, and Morocco 2030.
Read →France 2–0 Morocco — Mbappé 60' and Dembélé 66', Thursday July 9 at Boston Stadium (Gillette Stadium), Foxborough MA. Mbappé had earlier missed a first-half penalty.
Yes — eliminated in the quarterfinal. But back-to-back deep runs (2022 semifinal, 2026 quarterfinal) are unprecedented for an African nation, and Morocco co-hosts the next World Cup in 2030.
France vs Spain on Tuesday July 14, 3:00pm ET at Dallas Stadium (Arlington TX); England vs Argentina on Wednesday July 15, 3:00pm ET at Atlanta Stadium.
Sunday July 19, 2026 at New York New Jersey Stadium (MetLife Stadium), East Rutherford, New Jersey.
An unbeaten group stage, then a 3–0 win over co-hosts Canada in the Round of 16 in Houston — Ounahi 50' and 82', Rahimi 90+8', with Brahim Diaz recording an African-record 4th assist. Read the full match report.
"Shukran, Maghrib!" (شكراً مغرب) — and the chant stays the same forever: "Dima Maghrib!" (ديما مغرب). Learn more on our Darija chants page.