Trending 
Fans of Morocco’s national football team at the ongoing 2026 World Cup are hopeful the Atlas Lions will defeat France in the quarterfinals.
Morocco and France met in the semifinals of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and fans say the team is determined to avenge that defeat.
“This time, the stars are aligned for us,” Morocco supporter Rafik Lahlou said.
“We have the team, we have the spirit, we have solidarity. We have these young players playing all over the world. They are the best at their clubs. The whole country is supporting them, Africa is supporting them, the Arab world is supporting them. Even South America is supporting us and, as I said, we are representing the Global South at this World Cup.”
Morocco has enjoyed an impressive run at the 2026 World Cup. The team drew with Brazil in the group stage before eliminating the Netherlands and co-host Canada to reach the quarterfinals.
French fans, however, believe Morocco will provide a stern test.
“It’s very important because it’s for a place in the final four,” Jean-Marc Cesses told AP.
“Morocco is a really difficult team to beat, so it will be a good test for us.”
For some fans, deciding which team to support is complicated by France’s colonial history. Bie Awah, whose parents are from Haiti and Cameroon, said:
“It’s incredibly conflicting which team to support. Morocco was colonized by the French. Haiti was colonized by the French. Cameroon was colonized by the French. So it’s incredibly conflicting. But when you look at the French team today, it has representation from across the African continent, and that’s what gives me reassurance to support France.”
Morocco became the first African nation to reach a World Cup semifinal at the 2022 tournament.
The Atlas Lions are hoping to repeat that feat by defeating France and booking another place in the last four.
The match kicks off at 4 p.m. local time at Boston Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
