By Tony Okafor
Africa’s dream of producing a World Cup champion came to a painful end on Thursday night as France defeated Morocco 2-0 to book a place in the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The victory in Boston sent the French into a third consecutive World Cup semi-final and reaffirmed their status as one of the favourites to win the tournament.
Kylian Mbappe was once again the star of the show, making up for an earlier penalty miss by opening the scoring in the 60th minute with a superb curling effort from the edge of the penalty area.
Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele sealed the victory six minutes later with a low shot that slipped past goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
Morocco, Africa’s last remaining representatives in the competition, fought bravely but were ultimately outclassed by the two-time world champions.
Mbappe had earlier earned France a penalty after he was fouled by Manchester United defender Noussair Mazraoui, but Bounou produced a fine save to deny the Real Madrid forward from the spot.
The goal was Mbappe’s eighth of the tournament, strengthening his lead in the race for the Golden Boot.
He is now level with Lionel Messi on eight goals and one ahead of Norway’s Erling Haaland, while England captain Harry Kane has six goals heading into the quarter-finals.
The 27-year-old is also edging closer to World Cup history. His career tally has now risen to 20 World Cup goals, leaving him just one behind Messi’s all-time record of 21.
France, champions in 1998 and 2018 and runners-up to Argentina in the 2022 World Cup final, will face either Spain or Belgium in Tuesday’s semi-final in Dallas.
