2026 FIFA WORLD CUP  PREVIEW: CANADA FACE MOROCCO ON SATURDAY FOR A FIFA WORLD CUP ROUND OF 16 CLASH

By: Isaac Amponsah (Dr Ike)

Predictions: Away win/draw 

• The Canucks of Canada welcome The Atlas Lions of Morocco to NRG Stadium, Houston, USA, for Round of 16 fixture of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Saturday, July 4, 2026.

• Head-to-Head

• Canada and Morocco encounter at the Round of 16 stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be their fifth meeting between them. The Canucks have only faced Scotland (6) and Iceland (5) more times in their history without ever winning.

• Wednesday, October 24, 1984 (International friendly)
Venue: Abdullah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco 
Morocco                       3-2 Canada 

• Wednesday, June 1, 1994 (International friendly)
Venue: Complex Sportif Claude-Robillard, Montreal, Quebec 
Canada                          1-1 Morocco 

• Tuesday, October 11, 2016 (International friendly)
Venue: Grand Stade de Marrakech
Morocco                       4-0 Canada 

• Thursday, December 1, 2022 (Group Stage) [2022 FIFA World Cup]
Venue: Al Thumama Stadium, Doha, Qatar 
Canada                          1-2 Morocco 

Total matches played        - 4
Canada wins                     - 0
Goals scored                     - 4
Morocco wins                    - 3
Goals scored                    -10
Drawn games                    -1

• Recent Performance:

• Canada's Recent Performance:

• Canada won 1-0 against South Africa in their Round 32 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on June 28 at the SoFi Stadium, Inglewood.

• In their last six games in all competitions, they have three wins, two draws and one loss. Canada have scored twelve (12) and conceded four (4) in those games. scoring first in four of the six contests. They had four first-half goals, while their opponents netted once in the first 45 minutes. 

• Morocco's Recent Performance:

• The Atlas Lions of Morocco have won three (3) and drawn three (3) in their last six games in all competitions. Morocco scored 12 and conceded 5 over that period, netting first in four of the six. Most of their goals, seven (7), came in the first half, while their opponents scored three times before the break.

• Morocco won their World Cup Round of 32 match against the Netherlands in the 2026 FIFA World Cup 1-1 (3-2) on penalties against the Netherlands on June 29 at the Estadio BBVA, Guadalupe, extending Morocco's unbeaten run to 33.

• There have been 257 goals scored in 88 matches for the ongoing FIFA World Cup, for an average of 2.92 goals per match (as of July 3, 2026).

• A total of ten (10) players from Canada and Morocco have scored 15 goals combined after Round of 32 games of the 2026 FIFA World Cup:

• 3 goals (2 players)
• Jonathan David (Canada)
• Ismael Saibari (Morocco)

• 2 goals (1 player)
• Cyle Larin (Canada)

• 1 goal (7 players)
• Promise David (Canada)
• Stephen Eustaquio (Canada)
• Nathan Saliba (Canada)
• Issa Diop (Morocco)
• Achraf Hakimi (Morocco)
• Soufiane Rahimi (Morocco)
• Gessime Yassine (Morocco)

• Asamoah Gyan of Ghana is the all-time Africa's leading goal scorer at the FIFA World Cup with 6 goals; Ismaila Sarr of Senegal is currently on five goals, and Morocco's Ishmael Saibari is on 3 goals. 

• Match Facts:

• Canada are ranked 30th by the latest FIFA rankings (June 11, 2026), but their highest was 26th in September 2025.

• Their first international game was June 7, 1924 (Australia 3-2 Canada) in Brisbane, Australia.

• The Atlas Lions of Morocco are ranked 7th in the FIFA rankings (June 11, 2026), but their highest was 7th in June 2006.

• Their first international game was October 19, 1957 (Morocco 3-3 Iraq) in Beirut, Lebanon.

• Player Records:

• Canada's most-capped player: Atiba Hutchinson (104 caps, 9 goals).

• Morocco's most-capped player: Noureddine Naybet (115 caps, 4 goals).

• Canada's all-time top scorer: Jonathan David (42 goals, 81 caps).

• Morocco's all-time top scorer: Ahmed Faras (36 goals, 94 caps).

• Team Information:

• Canada is located in North America and is part of the CONCACAF Confederation.

• Morocco is located in Africa and is part of the UNAF Sub-Confederation.

• The Canadian Soccer Association was founded in 1912. It has been an affiliate member of FIFA since 1912 and a founding affiliate member of CONCACAF since 1961.

• The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF). It was founded in 1955, became affiliated with CAF in 1959, and with FIFA in 1960, and with the Union of North Africa Football since 2005.

• The Canucks of Canada first appeared at the 1986 FIFA World Cup held in Mexico, and they were eliminated at the group stages. 

• The 2026 edition of the tournament marks Canada's 3rd appearance at the FIFA World Cup (1986, 2022, 2026).

• The first player to score a FIFA World Cup goal for the Canada national team is Alphonso Davies in a 4-1 loss to Croatia on November 27, 2022, at Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan.

• Canada recorded their first-ever win at the FIFA World Cup on June 18, 2026, in a Group B fixture on Match Day 2 against Qatar (6-0).

• Jonathan David of Canada scored a hat-trick in their 6-0 win against Qatar in a group stage game of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at BC Place, Vancouver.

• Canada qualified for the knock-out stages for the first time in the history of the FIFA World Cup when they finished second in Group B that comprises Switzerland, Canada, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Qatar.

• The last nations to progress through both of their first two knock-out ties played in the FIFA World Cup tournament were South Korea and Turkey in 2002, who were both beaten Semi-finists.

• Alphonso Davies is the first captain to have led Canada to the knock-out stages of the FIFA World Cup since 1986 when they made their debut appearance in the tournament.

• Before the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Canada have played six (6) FIFA World Cup games without a win. 

• Canada have so far played 9 games at the FIFA World Cup since their debut appearance in the 1986 edition with a record of (W2 D1 L6 GF11 GA15).

• The Atlas Lions of Morocco first appeared at the 1970 FIFA World Cup and were eliminated at the group stages.

• The first player to score a FIFA World Cup goal for the Morocco national team is Houmane Jarir in a 2-1 loss to West Germany on June 3rd, 1970, at Estadio Nou Camp, Leon in Mexico.

• Morocco recorded their first-ever win at the FIFA World Cup on June 11, 1986 (40 years ago) in a Group F fixture on match Day 3 against Portugal (1-3) at the Estadio Tres de Marzo, Zapopan in Mexico.

• Morocco finished on top of Group F of the 1986 FIFA World Cup in a group that comprised England, Poland, and Portugal.

• In the 2022 edition of the FIFA World Cup, Morocco finished on top of Group F that had Croatia, Belgium and Canada.

• Morocco qualified for the knock-out stages for the third time in the history of the FIFA World Cup, finishing second in Group C that comprised Brazil, Scotland, and Haiti.

• The 2026 edition of the tournament marks Morocco's 7th appearance at the FIFA World Cup (1970, 1986, 1994, 1998, 2018, 2022, 2026).

• In 1986, Morocco made history as the first African team to win a World Cup group stage. 

• Morocco's fourth-place finish in 2022 was the highest by an African nation at the FIFA World Cup. They kept four clean sheets, more than across their previous 16 games in the tournament (3).

• Morocco were also the third FIFA World Cup Semi-finalist from outside Europe or South America (USA in 1930, South Korea in 2002 and Morocco in 2022).

• Morocco was ranked 10th in the FIFA World Rankings in April 1998. They were Africa's highest-ranked national team for three consecutive years, from 1997 to 1999.

• As of June 11, 2026, Morocco is ranked 7th in the World, the highest ranking by an African team since Nigeria in 1994.

• Morocco have so far played 27 games at the FIFA World Cup since their debut appearance in the 1970 edition with a record (W8 D8 L11 GF27 GA31).

• Additional Facts:

• Canada lost their only previous FIFA World Cup match against African opposition, and coincidentally, it was against Morocco in the Group stages of the 2022 edition (Canada 1-2 Morocco).

• Morocco against North American opponents at the FIFA World Cup:

• Morocco won their only game against North American opponents at the FIFA World Cup, and it was against this same customer in 2022 (Canada 1-2 Morocco).

• Two Nations' FIFA World Cup in the United States:

• Canada won their only previous FIFA World Cup game played on the soil of the United States:
• 28/06/2026 - South Africa 0-1 Canada (Round of 32) [2026 World Cup) 

• Morocco's previous FIFA World Cup games played on the soil of the United States (W2 D1 L3 GF8 GA8):
• 19/06/1994 - Belgium 1-0 Morocco (Group Stage) [1994 World Cup]
• 25/06/1994 - Saudi Arabia 2-1 Morocco (Group Stage) [1994 World Cup]
• 29/06/1994 - Morocco 1-2 Netherlands (Group Stage) [1994 World Cup]
• 13/06/2026 - Brazil  1-1 Morocco (Group Stage) [2026 World Cup]
• 19/06/2026 Scotland 0-1 Morocco (Group Stage) [2026 World Cup]
• 24/06/2026 - Morocco 4-2 Haiti (Group Stage) [2026 World Cup]

• Two Nations' FIFA World Cup games on Saturday:

• Canada and Morocco encounter will be the first time The Canucks' first FIFA World Cup game on Saturday.

• Morocco has played 5 games on Saturday at the FIFA World Cup (W1 D1 L3).
• 03/06/1970 West Germany 2-1 Morocco (Group Stage) [1970 World Cup]
• 25/06/1994 Saudi Arabia    2-1 Morocco (Group Stage) [1994 World Cup]
• 10/12/2022 Morocco          1-0 Portugal (Quarter-finals) [2022 World Cup]
• 17/12/2022 Croatia             2-1 Morocco (Third-place) [2022 World Cup]
• 13/06/2026 Brazil               1-1 Morocco (Group Stage) [2026 World Cup]