France produced another dominant display to defeat Morocco 2-0 and secure a place in the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, although concerns remain over the fitness of star forward after he was forced off late in the match.
Mbappé recovered from an early setback after seeing his penalty saved, curling home France’s opening goal with a superb finish. The strike was his eighth goal of the tournament, drawing him level with in the race for the Golden Boot.
The French captain later turned provider, setting up , who calmly slotted home France’s second goal to seal the victory.
France will now face the winner of the quarter-final between Spain and Belgium for a place in the World Cup final, with attention focused on Mbappé’s condition after his late injury.
Morocco’s defeat also brought an end to Africa’s participation in the tournament. The Atlas Lions were the last African team remaining after becoming the only African side to record a victory in the knockout stage, defeating co-hosts Canada in the Round of 16.
Morocco and Egypt also advanced through the Round of 32 after winning penalty shootouts.
Overall, African nations concluded their knockout-stage campaign with one victory, two penalty shootout successes and nine defeats.
Despite the results, several African teams delivered impressive performances, with a number of matches decided by narrow margins, including Senegal’s defeat to Belgium, while Cape Verde and Egypt pushed defending champions Argentina to the limit. England also required late heroics from Harry Kane to eliminate DR Congo in the Round of 32.
