France and Morocco face off again on Thursday, 9 July, in the World Cup 2026 quarter-final at Boston Stadium, better known as Gillette Stadium in Foxborough. Kickoff is 4:00 PM local time, which lands at roughly 1:30 AM IST on 10 July for anyone watching from India, according to ABHS.in.

That late slot is not unusual this tournament.The late slot is part of the wider timing problem for Indian viewers. Because the tournament is being played across North America, match start times in India range from late evening to early morning, with Olympics.com listing the window between 9:30 PM and 9:30 AM IST. Fans staying up will get a game that carries real history: this is only the second competitive meeting between these two sides, and the first ended with Morocco's fairytale run crushed one step short of the final.

Why this is personal: the 2022 semi-final

In Qatar, France beat Morocco 2-0 in the semi-final, with Theo Hernandez scoring inside five minutes and Randal Kolo Muani sealing it late, according to FIFA.com. That result ended Morocco's historic run as the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi-final. France coach Didier Deschamps later admitted the scoreline flattered his side: "We did what we had to do against a very good Moroccan side. They caused us a lot of problems," he said, per FIFA.com. Morocco boss Walid Regragui had no complaints about effort: "We gave it our all. We left it all out there."

Four years on, both teams arrive unbeaten. France have won all five of their matches this tournament, scoring 14 and conceding just two, though their quarter-final path was hardly smooth: a 1-0 grind past Paraguay settled by a Kylian Mbappe penalty in the 70th minute after a VAR review, per World Soccer Talk. Morocco have been just as consistent, and became the first African side to reach back-to-back World Cup quarter-finals after thrashing co-hosts Canada 3-0, with Azzedine Ounahi scoring twice and Soufiane Rahimi adding a stoppage-time third, according to ESPN.

Mbappe's record chase

Mbappe leads the tournament's Golden Boot race with seven goals and now sits on 19 career World Cup goals, one behind Lionel Messi's all-time mark of 20, per FOX Sports. A goal against Morocco would draw him level with Messi in a quarter-final that already carries revenge-script weight for the French squad. For a team that has needed narrow margins to advance, as TUI covered in its Round of 16 recap, Mbappe's sharpness in front of goal remains the difference-maker.

Team news and injury worries

Morocco go into the game with a fitness scare. Ismael Saibari was forced off against Canada with a hamstring injury, while France midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni remains a doubt with an adductor problem. France, meanwhile, remain without midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni, who stays sidelined through injury. Neither absence is confirmed as ruled out for matchday, so team sheets closer to kickoff will matter.

What's at stake

The winner books a semi-final spot on 14 July in Dallas/Arlington, where Spain or Belgium will be waiting after Spain knocked out Portugal and Belgium ended the United States’ run. That bracket also feeds into the storylines TUI has tracked around Cristiano Ronaldo's campaign and the broader knockout picture detailed in the quarter-final schedule breakdown.

Boston Stadium, with a capacity of around 65,000, hosts its seventh and final World Cup 2026 match for this fixture. France have already played at the venue during the tournament, while Morocco arrive after their last-16 win in Houston. For Boston Stadium, this quarter-final is the venue’s seventh and final World Cup 2026 match. It is a fitting stage: the same city that houses New England's football history now stages the rematch of one of Qatar 2022's most memorable semi-finals.

How to watch in India

Zee Entertainment holds India's broadcast rights for FIFA World Cup 2026 after JioStar declined to meet FIFA's asking price, according to The Wire. The match will air on Zee's dedicated Unite8 Sports channels in Hindi and English, with streaming available on ZEE5. Set an alarm for 1:30 AM IST, because Morocco have made a habit of turning up when it matters most, much like they did against Argentina in a different Round of 16 script covered by TUI in its earlier knockout preview.

Whichever way this goes, it settles an old score one round earlier than last time, and sends one more team a step closer to a first World Cup final.