Africa's hopes of producing a first-ever World Cup champion came to an end on Thursday after Morocco fell 2-0 to France, with Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembele sending Les Bleus into the tournament's semi-finals.
After wasting an early penalty, Mbappe recovered to break the deadlock before Dembele added a second as France proved too strong for the African champions, setting up a last-four meeting with either Spain or Belgium.
Morocco arrived at the quarter-final carrying the hopes of a continent after an impressive run, but they found it difficult to cope with a French side that controlled the game from start to finish.
France threatened from the opening minutes, with Mbappé forcing goalkeeper Yassine Bounou into an early save before Dayot Upamecano also tested the Moroccan shot-stopper from a corner.
The breakthrough looked close when Manchester United defender Noussair Mazraoui brought down Mbappé inside the penalty area, giving France a chance to take the lead.
Following a lengthy VAR review, Mbappéstepped up from the spot but his low effort lacked power and Bounou comfortably kept it out.
The missed penalty did little to slow France's momentum as Didier Deschamps' men continued to dominate possession and create chances.
Dembele and Adrien Rabiot both came close, Desire Doue also forced another save, while Aston Villa defender Lucas Digne rattled the crossbar with a powerful strike that appeared to take a slight touch off Bounou.
France finally found the goal they deserved in the 60th minute when Mbappé curled a brilliant effort beyond Bounou from just inside the penalty area.
Only six minutes later, Dembele made it 2-0 after driving at the Morocco defence before beating Bounou with a low shot despite the goalkeeper getting a hand to the ball.
Mbappe's eighth goal of the competition saw him draw level with Argentina captain Lionel Messi as the tournament's leading scorer.
The France forward now has the edge in the Golden Boot race because he has registered more assists than his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate.
His latest strike also took his World Cup total to 20 goals, leaving him just one behind Messi's record tally of 21.
France, beaten by Argentina on penalties in the 2022 World Cup final, remain firmly on course for another appearance in football's biggest match.
Many had tipped the two-time champions as favourites before the tournament, with former England striker Ian Wright describing Didier Deschamps' side as "one of the most clear favourites for a World Cup tournament I have ever seen".
Morocco, ranked seventh in the world, were expected to provide France with their toughest challenge so far, especially after their remarkable campaign.
Instead, the African champions managed only five attempts throughout the match and did not register a shot on target until the 83rd minute, when Azzedine Ounahi's free-kick was pushed away by Mike Maignan.
France's only concern came when Mbappe left the field in the 77th minute and was later seen with ice on his right ankle while on the bench.
However, there appeared to be no serious problem as the forward celebrated enthusiastically with his teammates after the final whistle.
France have now scored 16 goals in six matches, making them the tournament's highest-scoring side as they continue their bid to lift the World Cup for a third time after triumphs in 1998 and 2018.