World Cup: Fans hopeful but wary ahead of Morocco-France quarterfinal

One day before France and Morocco face off in the World Cup quarterfinals, fans of both teams gathered in Boston outside the hotel hosting the French squad.

France beat Morocco in the semifinals at the last World Cup in Qatar - a loss Morocco fans are ready to avenge.

"This time, the stars are aligned for us," says Morocco supporter Rafik Lahlou. "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 teams. 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 put on a strong showing throughout the tournament, tying with Brazil, knocking out the Netherlands and beating Canada to reach the quarterfinals. French fans know they're a team to be reckoned with.

"Very important because it's to enter in the final four," says Jean-Marc Cesses. "Morocco is a really difficult team to beat. So, it will be a good test for us.”

For some fans, the choice of who to support is complicated by France’s history as a colonial power. Bie Awah's parents are from Haiti and Cameroon:

“It's incredibly conflicting on which team to go for, like, Morocco was colonized by the French. Haiti was colonized by the French. Cameroon was colonized by the French, so it's incredibly conflicting, but we see the French team today has representation across the African continent and that's what gives me reassurance to go with the French team.”

In 2022, Morocco became the first African team to ever reach the World Cup semifinals. It’s an achievement they’ll be hoping to repeat this year.

The match kicks off at 4pm local time at Boston Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.