Morocco and France kick off the quarterfinal stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in one of the tournament's biggest matches.
The first quarterfinal is a rematch of the 2022 World Cup semifinal, when France defeated the Atlas Lions 2-0 in Qatar. Four years later, Morocco has the chance to rewrite history.
The Atlas Lions are the first African nation to reach the World Cup quarterfinals in two consecutive tournaments. Head coach Mohamed Ouahbi is hoping to guide an African team to the World Cup semifinals for the second time in history. Meanwhile, Didier Deschamps' France is chasing a third straight World Cup semifinal appearance after reaching the last four in both 2018 and 2022.
The winner will face either Spain or Belgium in the semifinals on July 14 in Dallas. Before kickoff, however, the biggest question for Morocco is whether star midfielder Ismael Saibari will be fit enough to play.
Why Isn't Ismael Saibari Playing Today?
Lars Baron/Getty Images
Saibari has been ruled out of Morocco's World Cup quarterfinal against France on July 9 and will not play.
The Bayern Munich-bound midfielder suffered a hamstring injury just 22 minutes into Morocco's 3-0 Round of 16 victory over Canada. Head coach Mohamed Ouahbi confirmed before the match that the quarterfinal comes "a little too early" for Saibari, although an MRI undertaken on Monday has shown that the strain is not too severe and he could be available for the semi-finals.
Saibari's absence is a huge setback for the Atlas Lions. He has been one of the stars of the tournament, becoming the first African player to score in all three group-stage matches, finding the net against Brazil, Scotland, and Haiti before also converting the winning penalty in Morocco's Round of 32 shootout victory over the Netherlands.
With Saibari unavailable, Soufiane Rahimi shold come into the starting lineup and will lead Morocco's attack against France.
Morocco Starting Lineup vs. France
(4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper
- Yassine Bounou
Defenders
- Achraf Hakimi
- Issa Diop
- Anas Salah-Eddine
- Noussair Mazraoui
Defensive Midfielders
- Ayyoub Bouaddi
- Neil El Aynaoui
Attacking Midfielders
- Chamsedine Talbi
- Azzedine Ounahi
- Bilal El Khannouss
Forward
- Brahim Díaz
