The Facts
Defending football world champion France defeated Morocco 2-0 on Wednesday to reach the 2022 FIFA World Cup final, which will be played on Sunday against Argentina. Morocco will face Croatia in the third-place match on Saturday.
Clashes broke out between French and Moroccan fans across France and Belgium shortly after the final whistle, with riot police using water cannons and tear gas to disperse the crowds. In Montpellier, a boy was reportedly run over by a vehicle and later died in hospital.
The Spin
Narrative A
Morocco's unexpected success in the 2022 World Cup was powerfully symbolic, prompting a wave of Arab pride and solidarity around the world. But, by facing down a former imperial power in this match, the semi-final game also platformed the complexities of French-Moroccan fluid national identities and the developments made by Morocco since it gained independence.
Narrative B
This game was a win-win situation on the pitch for many French-Moroccan football supporters. Off the pitch, however, this demonstration of dual-national pride has stoked conflict and fired up the right-wing, by leading indigenous French nationalists to claim that Muslim immigrants are not loyal to France and are even part of the so-called "great replacement." The game did not promote unity but division.