New Delhi: As France booked their place in the FIFA World Cup semi-finals with a 2-0 victory over Morocco in Boston on Thursday, the night’s biggest policing challenge unfolded more than 5,000 km away in London, where post-match disorder resulted in four arrests and left a police officer injured.
Kylian Mbappe recovered from a missed first-half penalty to break the deadlock in the 60th minute before Ousmane Dembele doubled France’s lead six minutes later, sealing Les Bleus’ place in the semifinals.
In London, Metropolitan Police riot officers were deployed to Edgware Road after disorder broke out among Morocco supporters gathered to watch the match. Police said bottles and fireworks were thrown at officers during the disturbances.
Following Morocco’s exit from the World Cup in the US, some football fans confronted police in and around London’s Edgware Road.
At least one police officer is injured, and several arrests have been made as football fans run amok in London.https://t.co/xWM6jxSk8C pic.twitter.com/VMk2KPxTJN
— Sky News (@SkyNews) July 10, 2026
Four people were arrested on suspicion of public order offences, while one police officer was hospitalised with a head injury. Police are reviewing CCTV footage and social media videos to identify others involved.
“The violent scenes we saw in Edgware Road last night were completely unacceptable and my thoughts are with the injured police officer. There is no place for disorder like this on our streets, which endangered officers and members of the public,” Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, posted on X.
“The police will be reviewing CCTV footage to identify those involved in criminality and bring them to justice,” he added.
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‘Fireworks set off, bottles thrown’
French authorities, meanwhile, had spent weeks preparing for potential unrest surrounding the quarter-final. Around 20,000 police officers were deployed across France amid concerns that the fixture could trigger unrest, given the countries’ shared colonial history and France’s large Moroccan diaspora.
No major disorder was reported in either France or Morocco.
Yet London saw the night’s most serious incident.
Edgware Road, home to one of Britain’s largest Arab and North African communities, has long been a gathering point during major international football tournaments. Police said the vast majority of supporters dispersed peacefully, with the violence confined to a small section of the crowd.
One of the police officers told The Guardian that the force was called after a group of fans blocked traffic on the road.
“The incident then escalated with the group throwing bottles and setting off fireworks. As a result, further officers were deployed to the area,” he said. “The road reopened from around 1 am. We will not tolerate such disorder on our streets, or attacks on our officers … we will be reviewing CCTV and video footage circulating on social media to ensure all those responsible are brought to justice.”
France will face either Belgium or Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup semi-final.
(Edited by Saptak Datta)