While UEFA has generally struggled so far in this latest World Cup, a quarterfinal matchup between Germany and France guarantees that at least one European team will be in the semifinals. This is the first time these longtime rivals have met at the World Cup since the semifinals in 1986, a match won by West Germany.
Germany should have defender Mats Hummels back after he missed the Algeria match with an illness. Shkodran Mustafi, however, is out for the rest of the tournament with a hamstring injury. Mustafi's injury has created speculation that Philipp Lahm could return to a starting role as a fullback, after starting every match so far in the midfield.
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French head coach Didier Deschamps' biggest decision is likely to be in the attack where he'll have to decide whether to start Olivier Giroud or Antoine Griezmann. The Real Sociedad attacker helped give France a boost as a substitute against Nigeria, leading some to believe he'll be rewarded with a start.
Mamadou Sakho is back from a hamstring problem, but may not regain his starting spot from Laurent Koscielny, who played well in France's Round of 16 win. Raphaël Varane spent the night in the hospital following their win over Nigeria, but should be able to play on Friday.
The winner will face the winner of the Brazil vs. Colombia match in the semifinal.
Match date/time: Friday, 12 p.m. ET
Venue: Estadio do Maracana, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
TV: ESPN2 (U.S. - English), Univision (U.S. - Spanish), CBC (Canada), BBC One (U.K.), TF1/beIN Sports 1 (France), ARD Das Erste (Germany)
Online: WatchESPN (U.S. - English), Univision En Vivo (U.S. - Spanish), CBC Sports streaming (Canada), BBC Player (U.K.)
United States announcers: Jon Champion, Stewart Robson
Listings via LiveSoccerTV, where you can find listings for other countries.