France and Morocco book World Cup quarterfinal rematch as round of 16 kicks off
Morocco beat Canada 3-0 and France edged Paraguay 1-0 in the opening matches of the 2026 World Cup knockout stage, setting up a quarterfinal clash in Boston on 9 July.
Round of 16 opens
The first two matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup knockout phase produced two clean-sheet victories. Morocco eliminated Canada 3-0, while France followed with a 1-0 win over Paraguay. Both sides secured their places in the last eight without conceding a goal.
Quarterfinal bracket takes shape
The results confirm the first quarterfinal pairing: France will face Morocco on Thursday 9 July at 23:00 (Greece time) at Gillette Stadium in Boston. It is a repeat of the 2022 World Cup semifinal in Qatar, where France won 2-0 to reach the final.
Remaining last-16 fixtures
Six more round-of-16 ties will be played through 7 July. Brazil meet Norway, Mexico take on England, Portugal face Spain, the United States play Belgium, Argentina meet Egypt, and Switzerland clash with Colombia. All times below are in Greece's time zone (UTC+3).
- Morocco 3-0 Canada, France 1-0 Paraguay (round of 16)
- Brazil vs Norway (round of 16)
- Mexico vs England (round of 16)
- Portugal vs Spain (round of 16)
- USA vs Belgium (round of 16)
- Argentina vs Egypt (round of 16)
- Switzerland vs Colombia (round of 16)
- Quarterfinal A: France vs Morocco (Boston)
- Quarterfinal B (Los Angeles)
- Quarterfinal C (Miami)
- Quarterfinal D (Kansas City)
- Semifinal 1
- Semifinal 2
- Third place match (Miami)
- Final (Los Angeles)
The road to the final
The quarterfinal winners will advance to the semifinals on 14 and 15 July. The third-place match is scheduled for 19 July at 00:00 in Miami, with the final later that day at 22:00 in Los Angeles.
