Azzedine Ounahi scored twice and Morocco scored three goals in the second half to stop the co-hosts from scoring and advance to the last eight.
Published July 4, 2026
Azzedine Ounahi scored twice to lead Morocco to a 3-0 victory over Canada in the World Cup Round of 16, making the Atlas Lions the first African country to reach the quarterfinals multiple times.
This is the second consecutive year Morocco has advanced to the top eight, having become the first African team to reach the semifinals in 2022.
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Canada had the upper hand early on, but neither team could break through on Saturday, with Morocco scoring in the 50th minute. Unahi received a free kick from Achraf Hakimi and, from outside the box, used his right foot to cut through traffic and fire a shot into the bottom right corner.
In the 82nd minute, Unahi made it 2-0 with a right-footed shot from the center of the box after receiving a pass from Brahim Dias in a quick counter-attack.
Sufian Rahimi, who came on as a substitute after just 22 minutes in place of injured forward Ismael Saibari, added the third goal in the final minute of stoppage time.
Morocco will play the winner of Saturday’s other match, Paraguay vs. France, in Boston on Thursday.
Canada’s loss ended a historic losing streak for the World Cup co-hosts, who faced South Africa in the first round of the finals for the first time and won 1-0. It was the third time Canadians had appeared in the World Cup, and their performance captivated a nation that is usually far more interested in hockey than soccer.
Morocco, ranked 6th in the FIFA rankings, sent the Netherlands to a penalty shootout to advance to the last 16, making the Netherlands the earliest to be eliminated from the World Cup.
It was a very physical match with eight yellow cards. Both teams received four.
Canada had several chances to score late. In the 78th minute, Jonathan David received a free kick from outside the box, but his shot went over the crossbar.
Moments later, Tajon Buchanan’s shot from about 30 yards was stopped by a diving save from goalkeeper Yassin Bounou. He was born in Canada to Moroccan parents and contributed to Morocco’s victory with three saves.
The match was a rematch of the last World Cup held in Qatar, where Morocco defeated Canada 2-1 in the group stage and finished in fourth place.
