Foxborough's final World Cup match is a quarterfinal between genuine world powers and tournament contenders

Foxborough’s final World Cup match will be a quarterfinal pitting Morocco against France, two teams described as world powers and title contenders, with a semifinal berth at stake Thursday afternoon. Saturday’s round-of-16 results set up the matchup: Morocco recovered from a sloppy first half to beat co-host Canada 3-0 in Houston, while France needed nearly 70 minutes to defeat Paraguay 1-0 in Philadelphia, winning on a Kylian Mbappé penalty. The teams previously played at Foxborough during group stage, after basing in the Northeast—France at Bentley University in Waltham and Morocco near Newark. Morocco’s Ismael Saibari scored 70 seconds into a 1-0 win over Scotland on June 19, and France finished Group I with a 4-1 win over Norway. France and Morocco are also set for a 2022 rematch after France’s 2-0 semifinal win. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.