France got here via a relatively uneventful 2-0 victory over an Edison Cavani-less Uruguay to make their first semifinal in 12 years. Uruguay were putting up a spirited resistance down 1-0 until the 61st minute when Antoine Griezmann hit a hard but stoppable shot that Uruguay’s keeper, Fernando Muslera, made a mess of and the ball slipped over the line. That seemed to deflate the South Americans and it was all over down 2-0.
Belgium’s 2-1 win over Brazil was anything but uneventful. Brazil had the run of play early and were creating chances including a Thiago Silva effort off the post, but then Own Goal put on his Golden Boot and showed up again as Fernandinho expertly finished a corner kick into his own net for the 1-0 Belgian lead.