Nelson Abadia's Colombian warriors illuminated the Women's World Cup pitch by securing a hard-fought 1-0 victory over a steadfast Jamaican squad on Tuesday to secure a quarterfinals tie against England.

But this wasn't just a victory for Colombia; it was a triumphant anthem sung for the entire Americas.

Rewinding the clock to 2019, Colombia's hopes were dashed as they narrowly missed out on World Cup qualification.

However, their meteoric rise was far from over.

In a stunning twist of fate, they charged through the group stages in Australia, toppling giants and even shocking the formidable Germany.

Now, their Cinderella story had reached an unprecedented chapter – the quarterfinals.

The South Americans, ranked 25th in the world, took on the relentless Reggae Girlz, who had steadfastly held their ground, not yielding a single goal throughout the tournament.

Colombia's relentless attack under Abadia finally bore fruit in the 51st minute.

Amid a symphony of cheers, captain Catalina Usme orchestrated a masterpiece, calmly slotting the ball home from within the box.

The triumph was not solely measured by goals but by a tenacious defense that stood unyielding, a fortress that evolved with each passing game.

"Our defense were brilliant, they have been evolving over the games, and of course, we also had brilliant attackers," Abadia said. "We analyzed how this game would be and thank God we performed well."

As the final whistle sounded, a euphoric Abadia rallied his troops, encapsulating the spirit that fueled their fire.

"There is immense pride. Home pride and regional pride because we know we are worthy representatives of not just Colombia but South America. Now we are playing for all of the Americas because our national team represents the whole continent."

Yet, amid the triumph, a tale of Jamaican valor must be told.

Ranked 43rd and often overlooked, they defied all odds, surging into the limelight with a historic first World Cup victory against Panama and resolute draws against the likes of France and Brazil.

For Jamaica's Lorne Donaldson, the defeat did little to overshadow the magnitude of their achievement.

"I give credit to Colombia; they were better than us tonight," he said. "But coming in (to the tournament) with no games, I feel very happy for the players that they could perform at this level. They gave everything tonight. They should be proud of themselves and I'm proud of them."

Amid the dramatic exchanges on the field, the fans were treated to a symphony of brute force and finesse.

In an opening act that saw players charging forward and tumbling under thunderous challenges, the atmosphere crackled with energy.

Diana Ospina's thunderous shot was a fleeting glimpse of promise as Colombia's rhythm began to find its pulse.

As the pendulum swung, Jamaica's resilience gave way, and their desperation led to clumsy challenges, reflected in the yellow cards of Chantelle Swaby and Drew Spence.

Then, a moment of brilliance ignited the contest as Ana Guzman, the teenage prodigy, sent an ethereal ball soaring to Catalina Usme.

With the poise of a seasoned virtuoso, Usme found the back of the net.

Jamaica, never ones to bow down, roared back with a shot that almost rewrote the narrative, their spirit unbreakable.

As the stage set ablaze and the final curtain drew near, Colombia clung to their dreams, their victory nearly doubled in the dying moments.

The header from Leicy Santos kissed the post, a tantalizing whisper of what could have been.

Stature superiority

In the later clash, Eugenie Le Sommer scored twice as France eased to a 4-0 win over Morocco at the Women's World Cup to set up a quarterfinal with co-hosts Australia.

Morocco had upset the odds to qualify for the last 16 at the expense of Germany in their debut appearance at the tournament, but they never managed to lay a glove on Herve Renard's French side in Adelaide.

Kadidiatou Diani opened the scoring on the quarter-hour mark and it was 3-0 just after the midway point in the first half as Kenza Dali and Le Sommer added further goals.

Veteran striker Le Sommer, who is France's all-time top scorer, netted again 20 minutes from time before a crowd of 13,557 as Les Bleues advanced to the last eight with minimum fuss.

They will now play Australia in Brisbane on Saturday, with the winners of that going on to play either England or Colombia in the semifinals.

While France are desperate to win a first major women's international title, Morocco came into this game with the pressure off, the latter's World Cup already a huge success. Their coach, the former French international midfielder Reynald Pedros, named an unchanged starting line-up following the 1-0 win over Colombia that sealed their place in the knockout phase.

Renard made five changes from the French side that beat Panama 6-3, including recalling Sakina Karchaoui at left-back.

Karchaoui, whose parents are Moroccan, set up the opener with a great run down the left flank, a quick exchange of passes with Selma Bacha, and a cross for Diani to nod in.

It was Diani's fourth goal at the tournament after her hat-trick against Panama in the final group game.

The second goal arrived in the 20th minute as Diani cut the ball back for Dali to sweep home a first-time finish off the far post.

And it was 3-0 three minutes after that following a defensive error, with Nesryne El Chad trying to clear but only succeeding in playing the ball off Diani, who set up Le Sommer.

At that point, Morocco might have feared an even heavier defeat than the 6-0 hammering they received from Germany in their first game.

However, France took their foot off the pedal after that and only scored once more.

In the 70th minute, substitute Vicki Becho crossed from the right for Le Sommer to head in her 92nd international goal at the back post.