Morocco’s Azzedine Ounahi is thrown within the air by his teammates after the World Cup round of 16 soccer match against Canada in Houston, Saturday, July 4, 2026. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
HOUSTON — Morocco is heading back to the World Cup quarterfinals and coach Mohamed Ouahbi believes his team has established itself amongst football’s elite.
Azzedine Ounahi scored twice to guide Morocco to a 3-0 win over Canada within the Round of 16 Saturday to make the country the primary African nation to achieve the quarterfinals greater than once.
“We aren’t any longer a surprise,” Ouahbi said through an interpreter. “Now when people speak about Morocco we’re a significant contender and it’s an important source of pride. I feel it’s only the start and I hope we proceed to have runs like this.”
READ: World Cup: Saibari, Morocco sends Netherlands to its earliest exit
And despite already making history on this World Cup, Morocco has much higher goals.
“We would like to maintain going,” Ouahbi said. “We don’t need to stop.”
It’s Morocco’s second straight appearance in the ultimate eight after becoming the primary African team to achieve the semifinals in 2022.
“We’re so proud to represent Africa since it’s a continent with a whole lot of talent and Africa deserves to be in the very best level in football,” goalkeeper Yassine Bounou said.
Neither team was in a position to break through until Ounahi took a free kick from Achraf Hakimi and made a right-footed shot through traffic from outside the box to the underside right corner to place Morocco on top 1-0 within the fiftieth minute.
Ounahi made it 2-0 on a right-footed shot from the center of the box off a pass from Brahim Díaz within the 82nd minute.
Soufiane Rahimi added a goal in the ultimate minute of stoppage time.
READ: World Cup Round of 32: Brazil-Japan, Netherlands-Morocco
Morocco will meet France, which beat Paraguay later Saturday, on Thursday in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
The loss ends a historic run for World Cup co-host Canada, which won its first-ever knockout round game, beating South Africa 1-0 to achieve Saturday’s match. The country was playing within the World Cup for just the third time and the run enchanted a nation that is generally way more interested by hockey than the pitch.
Canada coach Jesse Marsch shared his postgame message to the team.
“I told them that I used to be pleased with them and I challenged them to grasp that we will play like this on a regular basis against the very best teams on the planet,” he said. “We might be higher on the day. After which the challenge is, can we hold that standard for 90 minutes?”
Morocco, No. 7 within the FIFA rankings entering the tournament, dispatched the Netherlands in a penalty shootout to achieve the Round of 16 and send the country to its earliest World Cup exit.
READ: World Cup: Ismael Saibari lifts Morocco over Scotland
Marsch lauded how his team performed against a squad of Morocco’s caliber and the way Canada controlled the match for much of the day.
“The best way we pushed, the best way we were within the match, the standard we showed, the general impact within the match, we were higher,” he said. “We were higher than the No. 7 team on the planet today.”
Ouahbi had a robust response when told of those comments.
“By way of intensity they were good,” he said. “They were good for 98 minutes. Were they higher? It’s hard to say. It takes some nerve to say that whenever you lose 3-nil.”
Canada had a few possibilities to attain late. Jonathan David had a free kick from outside the box within the 78th minute, but his shot sailed over the crossbar.
Just after that, Tajon Buchanan’s shot from about 30 yards was stopped with a diving save from Bounou. Bounou, who was born in Canada to Moroccan parents, had three saves.
READ: World Cup: Brazil rallies for 1-1 draw vs Morocco in its opener
The victory set off an enormous celebration for Morocco’s fans back home.
Inside minutes, hundreds poured into the streets of Casablanca, Morocco’s largest city. Horns echoed as supporters climbed onto automobile roofs, waving flags and chanting.
Traffic ground to a halt along the Corniche Boulevard, one among the town’s foremost avenues, where ecstatic Atlas Lions supporters danced, set off fireworks and waved flares. Other major boulevards across Casablanca were also jammed with jubilant fans.
Canada reached the Round of 16 despite missing star Alphonso Davies for the vast majority of the tournament due to a hamstring injury. The Bayern Munich player logged only quarter-hour instead within the victory over South Africa but wasn’t available Saturday.
“His hamstring didn’t feel right,” Marsch said. “We were hoping that by the point he woke up this morning that he would feel higher, but he didn’t.”
This game was a rematch from the last World Cup when Morocco beat Canada 2-1 within the group stage. Morocco went on to complete fourth.
It was an especially physical match with eight yellow cards being issued. Each teams received 4.
Hakimi and Canada’s Richie Laryea received yellow cards within the fortieth minute. Hakimi shoved Laryea to the bottom after which Laryea pushed him and a minor scuffle ensued.
Your subscription couldn’t be saved. Please try again.
Your subscription has been successful.
Morocco midfielder Ismael Saibari left with an injury within the twenty second minute.