Sports
France face familiar foe Morocco in blockbuster World Cup quarters
France will look to keep its bid for a third World Cup title alive when it faces Morocco in a highly anticipated quarterfinal Thursday in Boston, renewing one of the tournament’s most compelling recent rivalries with a place in the semifinals at stake.
The winner will advance to face either Spain or Belgium in the final four, while the loser sees its World Cup dream come to an end.
The matchup is a rematch of the 2022 World Cup semifinal, when France defeated Morocco 2-0 before eventually finishing runner-up to Argentina. Four years later, the Atlas Lions have another chance to make history, while Les Bleus are chasing a third consecutive World Cup semifinal appearance under Didier Deschamps.
France has looked every bit like a title favorite throughout the tournament. Les Bleus have won all five of their matches, finishing atop Group I before eliminating Sweden and Paraguay in the knockout rounds. They have scored 13 goals while conceding only a handful of clear chances, combining attacking flair with defensive discipline.
Their toughest challenge so far came against Paraguay, whose aggressive approach frustrated the French attack for long stretches. The breakthrough finally arrived when Desire Doue won a penalty with a clever run into the box, allowing captain Kylian Mbappe to convert the decisive spot kick and send France into the quarterfinals.
Mbappe has once again emerged as France’s talisman. His goal against Paraguay lifted him to seven in the tournament, tying Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland in a tightly contested Golden Boot race. The Real Madrid forward has also reached 19 career World Cup goals, strengthening his pursuit of the tournament’s all-time scoring record.
France’s attacking depth has been one of its greatest strengths. Mbappe has been supported by Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola in a fluid front line that has overwhelmed opposing defenses. Doue has provided another creative spark off the bench and in midfield, adding energy and technical quality whenever called upon.
Deschamps, who has already cemented his place among football’s most successful coaches, is managing his final tournament before stepping down. Thursday’s match will mark his 25th World Cup game as France coach, matching Helmut Schön’s long-standing managerial record. A victory would also give him his 20th World Cup win, another remarkable milestone in an already decorated career.
France is expected to stick with the lineup that has carried it through the tournament. Midfielder Manu Kone is likely to continue filling in for Aurelien Tchouameni, who remains doubtful with a thigh injury after missing several training sessions. Marcus Thuram is also unavailable.
Morocco, however, has shown once again that its remarkable run in Qatar was no fluke.
The Atlas Lions arrive unbeaten in their five World Cup matches after finishing second in Group C before edging the Netherlands in a penalty shootout and comfortably defeating co-host Canada in the round of 16.
Against Canada, Morocco came alive after halftime. Midfielder Azzedine Ounahi scored twice to seize control before substitute Soufiane Rahimi added a stoppage-time goal to complete a convincing victory.
Mohamed Ouahbi’s side has now gone 10 consecutive matches without defeat since its controversial loss in January’s Africa Cup of Nations final, continuing to establish itself as one of the world’s elite teams and one of Africa’s strongest footballing nations.
Despite its recent rise, history favors France. Morocco has never beaten Les Bleus, losing four and drawing two of their previous six meetings. Their only competitive encounter remains the 2022 World Cup semifinal defeat.
Morocco will once again rely on its blend of technical ability, tactical discipline and defensive organization to challenge one of the tournament favorites.
There are injury concerns for the Atlas Lions. Bayern Munich midfielder Ismael Saibari remains doubtful after suffering a hamstring injury in the previous round, potentially opening the door for Rahimi to start in attack. Defender Chadi Riad is also being monitored after leaving the Canada match early.
Creative midfielder Brahim Diaz continues to be Morocco’s biggest attacking threat. After assisting twice against Canada, he became the first African player to register four career World Cup assists. Diaz has also contributed 10 goals and assists combined for his country this year, highlighting his growing influence.
Thursday’s quarterfinal also launches a blockbuster final-eight lineup featuring several of world football’s heavyweights.
Spain and Belgium meet Friday in Los Angeles, with the winner facing France or Morocco in the semifinals. Spain advanced after eliminating Portugal, while Belgium has recovered from an inconsistent group stage to build momentum with victories over Senegal and the United States.
On the opposite side of the bracket, defending champion Argentina continues its title defense after two dramatic knockout victories. Lionel Messi inspired an extraordinary comeback from two goals down against Egypt to keep Argentina alive, setting up a quarterfinal against Switzerland.
England, meanwhile, will meet Norway after surviving a thrilling contest against Mexico. Jude Bellingham believes the dramatic victory has strengthened England’s belief that it can win its first major international trophy since 1966, while Norway will again look to prolific striker Erling Haaland to continue its impressive World Cup campaign.
The ball used in Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” goal and his iconic strike score against England at the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals sold for $3.35 million Saturday, Heritage Auctions said.
The Dallas-based auction house sold the ball after experts matched it to photographs taken during the match but the final price fell significantly short of the pre-auction estimate of at least $10 million.
Prior to the auction, Heritage described it as arguably the most famous ball in any sport and said it could become the most valuable football item ever sold.
Maradona earned the phrase “Hand of God” for his opening goal against England when referees missed his left-handed punch past goalkeeper Peter Shilton and allowed the score to stand.
Just four minutes later, the Argentine captain took possession in his own half and wove past five English players, scoring a goal which fans later voted FIFA’s World Cup “Goal of the Century.”
Match referee Ali Bin Nasser of Tunisia, who officiated the match, held onto the ball for 36 years before it was first auctioned in London in 2022 for 2 million pounds ($2.37 million).
Maradona’s shirt from the same match later sold for almost $9.3 million at Sotheby’s.
The recent sale also did not break the record for the most expensive sports ball. Shohei Ohtani’s 50th home run ball from his historic 2024 MLB campaign fetched $4.392 million, including buyer’s premium.
The record for the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia belongs to Babe Ruth’s New York Yankees jersey from Game 3 of the 1932 World Series. Heritage Auctions sold it for $24.12 million, including the buyer’s premium, in 2024.
Turkish Süper Lig giants Trabzonspor announced Monday the arrival of former Liverpool star Fabinho to bolster their midfield.
Ahead of an expected transfer move, Trabzonspor shared a video of the 32-year-old Brazilian free agent aboard a plane on Turkish social media company NSosyal and invited supporters to welcome him at Trabzon Airport.
“Fabinho is coming. We invite all our supporters to the big meeting at Trabzon Airport at 11.30 a.m.,” the club said.
Fabinho also appeared in the video, referring to his anticipated reunion with former Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah.
“A familiar face is waiting for me in Trabzon and I am on my way. For us, everywhere is Trabzon,” he said, using a catchphrase associated with the Black Sea club.
Salah joined Trabzonspor earlier this month after nine seasons at the Premier League side Liverpool.
Liverpool pedigree
Fabinho and Salah played together at Liverpool between 2018 and 2023, becoming key members of the team assembled by German manager Jürgen Klopp.
Fabinho geliyor!
Saat 11.30’da Trabzon Havalimanı’nda tüm taraftarlarımızı büyük buluşmaya bekliyoruz.#FabinhoIsComing pic.twitter.com/LJwhcGOsHC
— Trabzonspor (@Trabzonspor) August 24, 2026
Fabinho joined Liverpool from Monaco in 2018 and established himself as the team’s defensive midfielder, with occasional central defensive duties.
He made 219 appearances and scored 11 goals during his five seasons with the English club.
Fabinho helped Liverpool win the UEFA Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League title in the 2019-20 season, ending the club’s 30-year wait to become English champions.
He also won the UEFA Super Cup, FA Cup and English League Cup with Liverpool.
Before moving to England, Fabinho helped Monaco win the French Ligue 1 title in the 2016-17 season and reach the Champions League semifinals.
The Brazilian left Liverpool for Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad in 2023 and most recently played for the Jeddah-based side.
His expected arrival would add further international experience to Trabzonspor’s squad and reunite him with Salah three years after their partnership at Liverpool ended.
Defending champions Barcelona opened their La Liga season in dominant fashion Sunday, thrashing Elche 5-0 with two goals each from Raphinha and Fermin Lopez.
Earlier in the day, Atletico Madrid fought back to secure a 2-2 draw with Villarreal, managing the stalemate despite playing down a man after Robin Le Normand was red-carded.
Fresh off Real Madrid’s narrow 2-1 win over Espanyol under Jose Mourinho, Barcelona laid down a marker with a dominant victory against Elche.
Karim Adeyemi marked his debut with a goal while another debutant Anthony Gordon contributed a pair of assists, allowing Hansi Flick to smartly managed his squad by benching several key players recovering from the World Cup.
Even with a subdued performance from Lamine Yamal following Spain’s tournament triumph, Barcelona’s emphatic display showed they won’t surrender their crown without a fight.
“Five goals against this team is good, Elche play fantastic football,” Flick told reporters.
“We are really happy that we won 5-0, three points, this is a fantastic start for us. It give us the confidence we need for the next matches.”
Brazil international Raphinha lined up as the team’s No. 9, after Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres left the club, and shone.
Barcelona are still looking for a striker after Atletico Madrid rejected their bid to sign Julian Alvarez.
“I’ll leave that to the president,” said Raphinha, when asked if Barca needed to sign a No. 9. “I am comfortable (anywhere) on the pitch.”
Raphinha opened the scoring for Hansi Flick’s side from a 14th-minute penalty after being brought down by Victor Chust.
Rapid winger Adeyemi, initially struggled on the left wing before finding his rhythm to double the lead before halftime, assisted unselfishly by Raphinha.
In an electric second-half substitute appearance, Anthony Gordon set up Raphinha’s second and provided an assist for Fermin Lopez.
Youngster Xavi Espart then set up Lopez for his second, a sweet redemption after missing Spain’s World Cup triumph due to injury, rounding off a dominant win.
“We ended up feeling good, it was a great game from the team, we’re still getting up to speed and we have to carry on like this,” said Lopez.
“I was really excited to start the season well, it was tough for me (this summer), and I’m happy.”
Flick, Barcelona’s high-pressing defense showed its trademark vulnerabilities at times, but goalkeeper Joan Garcia stood firm to secure a clean sheet with some crucial saves.
Simeone rescues draw, Alvarez returns
In Madrid, Giuliano Simeone rescued a draw for Atletico after penalties from Gerard Moreno and Georges Mikautadze overturned Marc Pubill’s 59th-minute opener for Villarreal.
During the match, Diego Simeone brought on Alvarez as a second-half substitute to a chorus of boos from the home crowd and the forward headed straight down the tunnel alone at the final whistle while his teammates went over to thank the fans.
“It wasn’t Julian’s decision, it was a decision from the club,” said Diego Simeone.
“I think that we all have to be united, Julian is with us in the team, while he’s here we will support him,” Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak told DAZN.
“It’s not a comfortable situation for anyone, I hope it’s resolved and we’re all happy at the end of the season.”
Simeone began with Alvarez on the bench and fans jeered as his name was read aloud by the stadium announcer at the Metropolitano stadium, after his attempt to leave the club this summer amid interest from Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Atletico took the lead just before the hour mark when Spain defender Pubill scored from long range, curling powerfully into the top corner.
Moreno leveled from the penalty spot after Morten Hjulmand clumsily felled Tajon Buchanan.
Simeone then introduced Alvarez for his first appearance of the campaign amidst hostile reactions from the crowd.
Villarreal took the lead with another penalty, with 12 minutes remaining after Mikautadze had been shoved over by Le Normand, who was sent off. Mikautadze took the spot-kick himself and calmly slotted home.
With just five minutes left on the clock, Atletico playmaker Alex Baena set up manager Diego Simeone’s son, Giuliano, to secure the equalizer.
In other La Liga action, Getafe edged past Racing Santander 1-0 courtesy of a late strike from Enes Ünal.
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin said Sunday he would not challenge FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who in turn, cast himself as a champion of smaller footballing nations in his bid for another term.
Nearly four weeks after Infantino dropped his controversial plan to hand 20% of a new FIFA commercial rights entity over to private investors, the fight over who controls the future of world football remains fierce.
European governing body UEFA, backed by the regional blocs for Asia (AFC) and North and Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF), has led the opposition and Ceferin suggested that Infantino should stand down.
During an appearance on the “The Rest Is Politics: Leading” podcast, he explained that the choice comes down to two options.
“One option is that he realizes that he doesn’t have the support, and that’s not only a political support of the ones who vote, but the political support of football community, the political support of fans, the political support of the players, former players, coaches.”
“And the second option that he goes to the elections in March, but in that case, I think he will have a candidate against him. I don’t know yet who,” Ceferin said.
Familiar sources reported last week that UEFA, the AFC and CONCACAF were considering a third option, a vote of no confidence in Infantino ahead of the ballot in March next year.
The Slovenian leader confirmed he hasn’t been in touch with Infantino since the dispute broke out, believing his lack of ambition to replace the Swiss official makes his critique more objective.
Smaller Europe nations oppose
Ceferin said the proposal was a greater threat to the sport than the European Super League plan that UEFA successfully fought in 2021, and said opposition was not just from Europe’s bigger nations.
“On one side was England, Germany, who you understand don’t want that, because this money is not so big for them. But on the other side was San Marino … Liechtenstein, ‘We are not for sale,’ they said” Ceferin added.
Infantino has shown no intention of leaving the post he has held since 2016, signaling that he will rely on support from less wealthy national associations in his bid for reelection through 2031.
In a video interview released by FIFA after meeting with Caribbean Football Union (CFU) members in the Dominican Republic over the weekend, Infantino said FIFA has a responsibility to narrow the gap between wealthier and poorer associations.
“We want to grow football in every one of our 211 countries in the world,” he said.
“We need to find investments for all the others, opportunities for all the others. This is about, indeed, finding and giving opportunities, access, and resources to world football.”
“Some, unfortunately, don’t need and they don’t want that others grow, but we need to narrow this gap between the big, big countries and all the others.”
“That’s what we have been trying to do in the last 10 years and also in the last 10 weeks, and what we will be continuing to do in the next years.”
With backing from South American and African blocs, Infantino has sought to marginalize the confederations by appealing straight to individual member countries throughout the crisis
Infantino welcomed in Dominican Republic
CFU forms part of CONCACAF and Infantino said he had been very happy with how he had been received on the sidelines of an under-14 tournament in the Dominican Republic.
CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani had asked Infantino to stay away from the tournament, saying his presence would overshadow the football.
Infantino pointed to the tournament, funded by FIFA development money, as proof of the progress made under his leadership.
Meanwhile, six Nordic members, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the Faroe Islands, met in Helsinki Sunday and released a joint statement demanding his resignation.
On his podcast appearance, Ceferin rejected claims that Europe was undermining support for poorer football nations and pushed back against attempts to paint UEFA as an entitled elite.
“What I hear is that they play on, you know, arrogant Europe is against us,” he said. “But I think someone should remind him (Infantino) that he is a European and that he was supported by UEFA, which he forgot.”
Erling Haaland debuted a new haircut for Manchester City’s Premier League opener, cutting his iconic long blond locks.
Haaland showed off his close-cropped look on social media Sunday, commenting, “New season, new trim.”
He posted another image on X showing the stages of his haircut, captioned, “Short hair don’t care.”
Hours later, Haaland walked onto the Etihad Stadium pitch to warm up ahead of City’s first league game against Bournemouth.
During a July interview with James Corden on Fox Sports, Haaland revealed he maintained his previous style on the advice of retired Swedish star Zlatan Ibrahimovic, another prolific long-haired Scandinavian striker.
Haaland told Corden, “Zlatan – you know what he told me? ‘Never cut your hair because the strength is in the hair.'”
City fans hope Haaland remains as prolific as ever despite shedding his famous haircut.
French star Michael Olise scored and set up another goal as Bayern Munich beat longtime rivals Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in the season-opening German Super Cup Saturday.
After a starring role with France at the World Cup, Olise was Bayern’s most dangerous attacker, regularly tearing down the right flank.
He found makeshift midfielder Nathaniel Brown for Bayern’s 28th-minute opener and then scored one of his own just before the break.
A late goal for former Wolves striker Fabio Silva brought Dortmund closer and the hosts could have levelled deep into stoppage time but Maximilian Beier scuffed a golden chance when through on goal.
“It’s a magnificent victory to kick off the season,” Bayern striker Harry Kane told Sky. “Winning the trophy away at our league rival’s home stadium is, of course, a great start to the season.”
Bayern were rusty and barely resembled the barnstorming side which lost just once domestically last season but had enough quality to see off a rebuilding Dortmund team playing in the season opener for the first time since 2021.
The victory meant Bayern won the trophy for the 12th time and a second time in a row since it was renamed for club legend Franz Beckenbauer in 2025.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said the win showed his side had the hunger to repeat last year’s heroics.
“Some people maybe think we’ll have a drop because we won everything last year. But that won’t be the case, we won’t rest and will try to win everything,” Kompany told reporters.
With new German coach Jurgen Klopp watching on, Bayern boss Kompany pulled a selection shock by naming left-back Brown behind Kane in attacking midfield.
Summer arrival Brown seemed to struggle in the unfamiliar role early but was on the spot to put Bayern in front.
An on-rushing Olise was felled on the edge of the box but the ball fell to Brown, who calmly slotted home.
Ramy Bensebaini looked to have equalized for the hosts when he glanced in a Julian Ryerson cross late in the opening half, but the offside flag soon quelled Dortmund’s celebrations.
Bayern rubbed salt into the wound moments later, just before the break.
Olise leapt onto a poor Jobe Bellingham backpass and kept the advancing defenders at bay before slotting home Bayern’s second.
Dortmund were better after halftime, mounting a sustained campaign on Bayern’s goal, but the visitors held firm despite wave after wave of attack.
Bayern went close to adding a third when Olise found Kane positioned centrally, but the England captain blasted over the bar.
Dortmund finally broke through with 15 minutes remaining, Silva turning in a Daniel Svensson cross after some clever work from debutant Giannis Konstantelias.
Silva had another chance with three minutes remaining but he guided his header into the waiting arms of Manuel Neuer.
In the final minute, Bensebaini saw straight red for a clumsy tackle on Bayern debutant Ismael Saibari.
Dortmund still had a chance for a late equalizer but Beier chipped over the bar when one-on-one with Neuer.
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