France booked their place in the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup after second-half goals from Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele secured a 2-0 victory over Morocco in Boston, ending the Atlas Lions’ historic campaign.
Didier Deschamps’ side overcame stubborn resistance from Morocco before two moments of quality within six minutes settled a tense quarter-final at Boston Stadium.
After a cagey first half that ended goalless, tournament top scorer Mbappe finally broke the deadlock in the 62nd minute with a trademark curling strike from the edge of the penalty area. The France captain collected the ball just outside the box before bending an unstoppable effort beyond Yassine Bounou into the top corner for his eighth goal of the tournament.
The goal lifted France, and just six minutes later they doubled their advantage through Dembele.
The Paris-born winger was afforded too much space to drive towards goal before unleashing a low effort from outside the penalty area. Bounou managed to get a hand to the strike but could only help it into the net as France seized complete control of the contest.
Morocco had enjoyed spells of possession throughout the encounter but struggled to create clear-cut chances against a disciplined French defence.
Mohamed Ouahbi attempted to change the game with the introductions of Soufiane Rahimi, Sofyan Amrabat, Gessime Yassine and Zakaria El Ouahdi, but the Atlas Lions were unable to find a route back into the match.
France also suffered an injury scare late in the contest when Mbappe went down before being substituted in the closing stages. However, the striker walked off the pitch unaided, offering encouragement ahead of the semi-finals.
Deschamps introduced Warren Zaïre-Emery for his FIFA World Cup debut during the second half, while Jean-Philippe Mateta and Bradley Barcola were also brought on as France comfortably managed the closing minutes.
The defeat brought an end to another impressive World Cup campaign for Morocco, who had become the first African nation to reach consecutive World Cup quarter-finals after their historic semi-final run in Qatar four years earlier.
Despite their elimination, the Atlas Lions once again enhanced Africa’s reputation on the global stage with victories over top opposition before eventually falling to one of the tournament favourites.
For France, the victory keeps alive hopes of winning a third FIFA World Cup title and adds to an impressive tournament in which they have now won all six matches in normal time.
Les Bleus have looked one of the most complete teams in North America, combining defensive solidity with the attacking brilliance of Mbappe, whose tally of eight goals now strengthens his bid to retain the Golden Boot.
Dembele’s strike further underlined the depth of France’s attacking options as the former world champions continued their march towards another final.
France will now await the winner of the quarter-final between Spain and Belgium as they seek a place in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final.
