Morocco came from behind twice to beat Haiti 4-2 in their Group C match of FIFA World Cup 2026 at Atlanta on Wednesday.
Published: June 25, 2026, 1:01 PM IST
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Achraf Hakimi of Morocco vies for the ball with Ruben Providence of Haiti in their FIFA World Cup 2026 match. (Photo: IANS)
Morocco vs Haiti FIFA World Cup 2026 Group C: The 2022 World Cup semifinalists Morocco were given a massive scare by 83rd-ranked Haiti in their Group C match of FIFA World Cup 2026 at the Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Wednesday. Morocco had to come from behind to down Haiti 4-2 and both their place in the Round of 32 as the second-ranked team behind Brazil from Group C.
The African nation also created history in this World Cup encounter as they won their first-ever match in the tournament after conceding the opening goal. They will now face the winner from Group F – between Netherlands, Japan and Sweden – at the Estadio BBVA in Monterrey on Tuesday.
Soufiane Rahimi and Gessime Yassine came off the bench to lift Morocco and end the Caribbean nation’s dreams of a first ever point at the World Cup. Rahimi and Yassine goals made it 33 strikes by substitutes in this World Cup – the highest-ever in any edition.
Morocco, who had become the first African team to reach the World Cup semifinals four years ago in Qatar, twice came from behind against a team playing in football’s biggest tournament for the first time in 52 years.
Rahimi’s deflected shot in the 78th minute put Morocco ahead 3-2 and Yassine killed off the contest with a goal in the 89th minute. Brazil beat Scotland 3-0 in the other Group C match to top the table.
“At times we lacked humility and paid the price for it. We weren’t fully committed in the duels, we gave them confidence and allowed them to grow into the game and score twice. At halftime, the coach told us we needed to be more aggressive, win the second balls and bring greater intensity to our attacking play,” Morocco midfielder Bilal El Khannouss was quoted as saying by AP news agency.
Morocco are the reigning Africa Cup of Nations champions and have ambitions to go deep again after making history at the last World Cup. They pushed for an equalizer and Achraf Hakimi finally got it in the 39th minute.
Mexico beat Czechia to keep all-win record
FIFA World Cup 2026 co-hosts Mexico hammered Czechia 3-0 to qualify for the Round of 32 with an all-win record from Group A in a clash at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. It was fitting farewell to their legendary goal-keeper Guillermo Ochoa, who became the third player after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to play in six World Cups.
Mexico came into their final league clash already certain of top spot in Group A and a place in the Round of 32, but Czechia needed a win to stand any chance of joining ‘El Tri’ in the knockouts. This is the first time ever that Mexico have won all three of their Group Stage matches at the World Cup, and also the first time they have kept clean sheets in all of their league clashes since 1970.
The home side settled into their game as Mateo Chavez got the ball rolling, latching on to a Raul Jimenez cross to slot it into the goal to give the lead. Just six minutes later, they double the lead when Jorge Sanchez was sent through and Czech keeper Matej Kovar’s clearance saw the ball land to Julian Quinones, who put Mexico 2-0 in front.
The celebrations in Mexico City when up a notch when legendary goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa was brought on for his 153rd Mexico cap with 12 minutes to go in the contest.
(How to watch and stream FIFA World Cup 2026 in India: Multiple group-stage matches that will take place simultaneously will be aired across Zee5 app and website. Link: https://www.zee5.com/)
