France, Morocco bring post-colonial ties and family feel to Boston

BOSTON, July 8 : France and Morocco meet in a World Cup quarter-final on Thursday with their post-colonial ties coursing through the fixture, from Morocco players born and developed in France to the close friendship between Kylian Mbappe and Achraf Hakimi, forged during their time together at Paris St Germain.

With the build-up, match and aftermath subject to a heavy security presence in France, the Boston setting may lend the occasion a more familial feel: a meeting between countries whose histories are inseparable, but whose footballers and supporters are often connected by migration, language, family and friendship.

Morocco was under French protectorate from 1912 to 1956. The two countries have remained closely connected through education, business and migration, while football has become one of the clearest expressions of those ties.

Six members of Morocco’s squad were born in France, while several others have played in Ligue 1 or passed through France’s youth system before choosing to represent Morocco.

Their paths reflect the dense sporting links between the countries, and Morocco’s ability to turn its diaspora into a competitive strength.

Teenager Ayyoub Bouaddi is one of the clearest examples of those overlapping ties: born in France, developed at Lille and capped by France at youth level before choosing Morocco, he embodies the kind of dual footballing identity that gives this fixture particular resonance.

France, world champions in 2018, are one of the game’s established powers, with the tournament experience and attacking talent expected of a team chasing another World Cup. Morocco arrive with the confidence of a side who have made a habit of shifting expectations, four years after becoming the first African country