It's a true David vs. Goliath meeting as defending FIFA World Cup champions France match up against Morocco in the 2022 semifinals Wednesday, December 14.
Morocco are the first African nation to reach the semifinals of a FIFA World Cup, and now have reason to dream bigger as they sit one step away from the sport's most coveted match. The Atlas Lions have weathered numerous injuries to present a real challenge for the tournament's top sides.
France, meanwhile, will now see themselves as real favorites to become the first nation to repeat as World Cup champions since Brazil in 1962. Kylian Mbappe is the superstar in the squad, but Antoine Griezmann is putting on a show and has a real shot at securing the Golden Ball award.
Individual awards, however, will be little consolation for any team that goes out at this stage, coming so close to World Cup glory.
MORE: When is France vs. Morocco? Date, time, history, and TV info for semifinal match
Pre-match odds via BetMGM, Caesars, and FanDuel (USA), Sports Interaction (Canada), SkyBet (UK), and Ladbrokes (Australia).
France vs Morocco odds, lines, handicaps to win
Once again, Morocco face long underdog odds. That has not fazed them to this point, as Morocco have been at least 3/1 underdogs in every single positive result they've achieved so far.
They have also been extremely defensive, and thus the odds suggest they will struggle to find the back of the net, yet that didn't stop them from hitting Portugal on the counter. France, for all their offensive firepower, still can't overwhelm the organization of Morocco's defense which swings the under in heavy favor.
MORE: Full betting preview for France vs Morocco with picks, best bets, props, and fliers
Odds via BetMGM (USA), Sports Interaction (Canada), SkyBet (UK), and Ladbrokes (Australia).
| BetMGM | Sports Interaction | SkyBet | Ladbrokes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| France win | -190 | 1.51 | 1/2 | 8/15 |
| Draw | +290 | 3.75 | 3/1 | 11/4 |
| Morocco win | +600 | 6.60 | 6/1 | 13/2 |
| Both teams to score Y / N | +135 / -190 | 2.29 / 1.48 | 5/4, 4/7 | 27/20, 8/15 |
| Over / Under 2.5 goals | +120 / -165 | 2.21 / 1.62 | 6/5, 8/13 | 5/4, 3/5 |
| France -0.5 | -210 | 1.52 | — | — |
| Morocco +0.5 | +145 | 2.49 | — | — |
| France advance | -450 | 1.24 | 1/5 | 2/9 |
| Morocco advance | +310 | 3.65 | 10/3 | 3/1 |
Note: Odds above for 90 minutes of regulation except "to advance."
France vs Morocco team news, injuries
The pre-tournament absences of Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kante, Mike Maignan, Christopher Nkunuk, Presnel Kimpembe and Karim Benzema haven't proven nearly as meaningful as previously believed. Olivier Giroud has replaced Benzema as prime goalscorer with aplomb, while Theo Hernandez has stepped in for his stricken brother Lucas Hernandez at left-back well after the latter's torn ACL in the group stage opener.
Morocco have a number of issues on the injury front. The most concerning is to captain Romain Saiss, who was reportedly carrying an injury into the Portugal game and had to be stretchered off in the second half. Noussair Mazraoui and Naif Aguerd both missed the Portugal match with injuries of their own. However, Morocco's strength has been in their surprising depth. Yahia Attiyat Allah admirably filled the massive shoes in Mazraoui's absence, while Badr Banoune came on for Saiss and held the line.
France vs Morocco goalscorer odds
Kylian Mbappe, as the world's best young player, is no surprise as the betting favorite to score in this match. However, his elder statesman up front, Olivier Giroud, is right on his heels, having scored four goals this tournament. Both have a real shot at the tournament's Golden Boot award, as Mbappe leads the charge with five of his own.
For Morocco, the quarterfinal hero Youssef En-Nesyri is the main man, while Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech is among the Moroccan goalscorer frontrunners as well.
France goalscorer odds vs. Morocco
| BetMGM | Sports Interaction | SkyBet | Ladbrokes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| K. Mbappe | First: +300 Any: +125 | First: 4.60 Any: 2.17 | First: Any: | First: 3/1 Any: 5/4 |
| O. Giroud | First: +350 Any: +150 | First: 6.00 Any: 2.77 | First: Any: | First: 7/2 Any: 6/4 |
| A. Griezmann | First: +500 Any: +210 | First: 8.00 Any: 3.52 | First: Any: | First: 5/1 Any: 21/10 |
| M. Thuram | First: +550 Any: +240 | First: 7.80 Any: 3.42 | First: Any: | First: 11/2 Any: 12/5 |
| O. Dembele | First: +700 Any: +300 | First: 9.40 Any: 4.02 | First: Any: | First: 7/1 Any: 3/1 |
Note: Odds above for 90 minutes of regulation only.
Morocco goalscorer odds vs. France
| BetMGM | Sports Interaction | SkyBet | Ladbrokes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Y. En-Nesyri | First: +900 Any: +400 | First: 14.00 Any: 5.52 | First: Any: | First: 9/1 Any: 4/1 |
| A. Hamdallah | First: +1000 Any: +450 | First: 16.00 Any: 6.44 | First: Any: | First: 10/1 Any: 9/2 |
| H. Ziyech | First: +1000 Any: +550 | First: 18.00 Any: 7.12 | First: Any: | First: 12/1 Any: 11/2 |
| S. Boufal | First: +1600 Any: +640 | First: 19.00 Any: 7.27 | First: Any: | First: 16/1 Any: 13/2 |
| I. Chair | First: +1800 Any: +750 | First: 23.00 Any: 9.00 | First: Any: | First: 18/1 Any: 15/2 |
Note: Odds above for 90 minutes of regulation only.
France vs Morocco half odds
Morocco are not expected to score multiple goals, and therefore their odds to win either and both halves are inflated. Meanwhile, the second half of every France game but their group stage opener has featured more goals than the first half.
| Caesars | SkyBet | Ladbrokes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Win either half | FRA: -270 MOR: +285 | FRA: MOR: | FRA: 1/3 MOR: 14/5 |
| Win both halves | FRA: +320 MOR: +2500 | FRA: MOR: | FRA: 3/1 MOR: 50/1 |
| Half most goals | 1H: +220 Draw: +210 2H: +105 | 1H: Draw: 2H: | 1H: 12/5 Draw: 21/10 2H: 1/1 |
Note: Odds above for 90 minutes of regulation only.
France vs Morocco cards & corners odds
This semifinal is not expected to feature many bookings, with the over 4.5 total at plus odds. This despite Morocco seeing a player, Walid Cheddira, suspended for a pair of yellow cards in quick succession late in the quarterfinal win over Portugal. France have a few players with low odds to be booked, but most of them are substitute options at best, leaving Jules Kounde as the most likely Bleus starter to be carded.
What there are expected to be many of, however, is corners, as the over is inflated all the way to 9.5 which still features even-money odds. France are joint-second in the tournament with 31 corners through five matches, even with fellow semifinalists Argentina and behind Brazil's 37.
| FanDuel | Sports Interaction | SkyBet | |
|---|---|---|---|
| FRA O/U 1.5 cards | -130 / +104 | — | — |
| MOR O/U 2.5 cards | +104 / -132 | — | — |
| FRA 20+ book pts | — | — | 1/1 |
| MOR 30+ book pts | — | — | 11/8 |
| O/U 4.5 total cards | +122 / -154 | 2.28 / 1.56 | — |
| 40+ total book pts | — | — | 5/6 |
| J. Kounde booked | +320 | — | — |
| B. Benoun booked | +190 | — | — |
| FRA red card | +650 | — | 9/1 |
| MOR red card | +480 | — | 7/1 |
| Either/Both red card | +340 / +2800 | — | 4/1, 66/1 |
| Over 9.5 total corners | +102 | 2.09 | 6/5 |
| FRA over 6.5 corners | -113 | — | 1/1 |
| MOR over 2.5 corners | -104 | — | 10/11 |
Note: Odds above for 90 minutes of regulation only.
Note: Cards totals count a straight red card as two cards, while a second yellow to a red counts as three total cards (one for initial yellow, two for red).
How do booking points work?
Instead of counting total cards in a match, "booking points" are utilized in Europe to summarize the disciplinary record of a team or match.
Here is how booking points are calculated:
- One yellow card = 10 booking points
- One red card = 25 booking points
- Second yellow card = 35 total booking points (10 for initial yellow, 25 for red — 2nd yellow does not contribute)
