Canada 0-3 Morocco: Ounahi Double Sends Atlas Lions Into World Cup Quarter-Finals
4 July 2026, FIFA World Cup Round of 16 — The co-hosts’ party is over. Morocco dismantled Canada 3-0 with a ruthless second-half display, Azzedine Ounahi scoring twice before substitute Soufiane Rahimi added a stoppage-time third past Maxime Crepeau. The Atlas Lions march into the quarter-finals — the first African nation to reach the last eight at more than one World Cup.
First half: a tense stalemate
For 45 minutes this was a chess match. Canada, roared on by a partisan home crowd, defended in a compact block and threatened in flashes through Alphonso Davies’ bursts down the left. Morocco monopolised possession and probed patiently through Achraf Hakimi’s overlaps on the right, but the final ball kept letting them down. The one significant moment was an unwanted one for Walid Regragui: Ismael Saibari limped off before the break, replaced by Rahimi — a forced change that would end up on the scoresheet. Goalless at the interval, and genuinely in the balance.
Second half: Ounahi takes over
Five minutes after the restart, the deadlock cracked. In the 50th minute, Hakimi rolled a free-kick to Ounahi outside the box, and the midfielder arrowed a right-footed strike through a forest of bodies into the bottom corner, leaving Crepeau rooted.
Chasing the game, Canada pushed higher — and walked straight into Morocco’s counter-attacking trap. In the 82nd minute, a lightning breakaway ended with Brahim Diaz slipping Ounahi through, and he finished coolly from the middle of the box for his second. Deep into stoppage time, Diaz turned provider again, teeing up Rahimi to beat Crepeau and complete the rout. Canada’s exit makes them the first of the 2026 co-hosts eliminated at the Round of 16 stage.
Key performers
Ounahi was the obvious man of the match — a long-range thunderbolt and a clinical breakaway finish from a player who ran the midfield all evening. Brahim Diaz supplied the assists for the second and third goals, while Hakimi was, as ever, Morocco’s engine on the right flank. For Canada, Crepeau could do little about any of the goals and made several saves that kept the scoreline respectable.
What it means: France await in a 2022 rematch
Morocco’s reward is a quarter-final against France, who eliminated Paraguay — a direct rematch of the 2022 semi-final in Qatar, when Les Bleus ended Morocco’s historic run 2-0. Four years on, Regragui’s side arrive with sharper teeth and a genuine belief that the semi-finals, and beyond, are within reach. It is the tie of the round.
Browse more coverage in our match report section, follow every game on live scores, and check the full quarter-final schedule on our fixtures page.
Disclaimer: score and goalscorer details are compiled from multiple published reports; official FIFA data prevails in case of any discrepancy.
