France secured a place in the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup after defeating Morocco 2-0 in their quarter-final clash on Thursday night, with captain Kylian Mbappe inspiring Les Bleus to victory.
After a goalless first half, Didier Deschamps’ men raised the tempo following the restart and finally broke the deadlock in the 60th minute when Mbappe made amends for an earlier penalty miss by firing France ahead.
The Real Madrid forward, who had failed to convert from the spot in the 28th minute, redeemed himself with a clinical finish to hand the two-time world champions the lead.
France doubled their advantage six minutes later as Ousmane Dembele latched onto an assist from Mbappe before slotting home to make it 2-0.
Morocco attempted to mount a comeback with several substitutions, introducing Abdelhamid Bouaddi, Soufiane Rahimi, Yassine Ghriss and Zakaria El Ouahdi in the second half, but the Atlas Lions struggled to break down a disciplined French defence.
Deschamps also refreshed his side with changes, bringing on Jean-Philippe Mateta, Bradley Barcola, Warren Zaïre-Emery and Malo Gusto as France comfortably saw out the contest.
The victory sends France into the World Cup semi-finals, where they will continue their quest for a third world title, while Morocco’s impressive campaign comes to an end after another memorable tournament for the North African side.
Mbappe was the standout performer for France, scoring one goal and providing the assist for Dembele’s strike to lead Les Bleus into the last four.
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