World Cup 2026: How Morocco became a football powerhouse
Key points
- Morocco’s success is built on an effective strategy, but there has been some upheaval in the run-up to the World Cup.
- In a couple of decades, Morocco went from being regularly eliminated in the group stages of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and failing to qualify for several successive World Cups to sitting inside the top 10 of the FIFA men’s rankings, reaching the semifinals at the Qatar World Cup in 2022 and being considered credible contenders for the sport’s biggest tournament this summer.
- Even more impressive is that the Atlas Lions’ success is not limited to the senior men’s national team but has been spread across every age group and category.
- Morocco are currently the 2025 AFCON champions, albeit after Senegal were stripped of the title.
- They were also 2025 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) finalists, 2025 FIFA Arab Cup champions, 2025 African Nations Championship (CHAN) champions,...
Quick Summary
Morocco’s success is built on an effective strategy, but there has been some upheaval in the run-up to the World Cup. In a couple of
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Key Takeaways
- Morocco’s success is built on an effective strategy, but there has been some upheaval in the run-up to the World Cup.
- In a couple of decades, Morocco went from being regularly eliminated in the group stages of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and failing to qualify for several successive World Cups to sitting inside the top 10 of the FIFA men’s rankings, reaching the semifinals at the Qatar World Cup in 2022 and being considered credible contenders for the sport’s biggest tournament this summer.
- Even more impressive is that the Atlas Lions’ success is not limited to the senior men’s national team but has been spread across every age group and category.
- Morocco are currently the 2025 AFCON champions, albeit after Senegal were stripped of the title.
- They were also 2025 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) finalists, 2025 FIFA Arab Cup champions, 2025 African Nations Championship (CHAN) champions, 2025 U-20 FIFA World Cup champions, 2025 U-17 AFCON champions, 2024 Olympic men’s bronze medallists and 2024 Futsal AFCON champions.
📌 Source: Al Jazeera
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