The newfound harmony between France and Morocco will be tested Thursday night when the two nations clash in the World Cup quarterfinals in Boston. Relations between Paris and Rabat have rarely been warmer, after President Emmanuel Macron recognized Morocco’s disputed sovereignty plan for Western Sahara in 2024. During a state visit to Rabat that year,…
Remarks by Paraguayan Senator Celeste Amarilla shocked France — and much of the world — earlier this week after she branded Kylian Mbappé a “brute,” mocked his intelligence and questioned his French identity. Days later, the fallout has spiraled from international condemnation to criminal investigations and extraordinary South American threats to extradite the France captain….
The World Cup quarter-final against France folds every saga about Moroccan defender and captain Achraf Hakimi into a single frame. France is the team that ended Morocco’s historic 2022 run, the country where Hakimi became a global star at Paris Saint-Germain — and the legal system now charging him with rape over a 2023 allegation….
Seventy-two members of the European Parliament on Wednesday demanded an investigation into FIFA President Gianni Infantino after FIFA lifted the red card suspension of star U.S. striker Folarin Balogun following a call from President Donald Trump. Last Thursday, Trump called Infantino to lobby for the automatic ban given to Balogun after receiving a red card…
Morocco is having a moment as a powerhouse soccer nation, reaching the business end of back-to-back World Cups and seeing a pathway to winning this year’s tournament. “Morocco has gained everybody’s respect now,” team coach Mohamed Ouahbi told reporters after the squad’s victory over the Netherlands in the first knockout round of the 2026 World…
BRUSSELS — The atmosphere at Le Stalingrad tea salon in Brussels is electric, full of supporters packed shoulder-to-shoulder, with Arabic commentary blaring from the televisions and every chance greeted by deafening reactions. The crowd has erupted each time Morocco held firm defensively, but the loudest roar of the night (so far) came when France’s Kylian…
French president and dedicated soccer fan Emmanuel Macron is having himself a day. He attended the Tour de Francein the Pyrenees earlier Thursday, hours before France’s World Cup quarterfinal against Morocco. French outlet RMC Sport reported that shortly after the cycling stage finished, Macron urged star French rider Paul Seixas to remain with his team:…
For one evening at least, Les Bleus accomplished what few others can: uniting France’s political class. Senior French politicians from across the spectrum praised France’s victory over Morocco in the World Cup quarterfinals on Thursday night, as they eye eventual glory in New Jersey on July 19. “We’re proud of our Les Bleus,” said French…
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (former captain of the Yale University baseball team) said he’s not “a soccer fan.” But he did take some time to talk about the World Cup and U.S. national team while guest hosting Sean Hannity’s radio program Thursday — including a blunt assessment of how the team fared in its 4-1…
Black leaders across the South have expressed a visceral shock in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision gutting the Voting Rights Act. But as the surprise wears off, a sense of isolation has begun to set in among some. Black lawmakers and activists across the Deep South argue they have been abandoned by the…
