The Atlas Lions made waves when they became the first African nation to reach the semi-finals at the World Cup four years ago in Qatar. Now, heading into their seventh World Cup appearance, they want to go even further.
To do this, recently hired manager, Mohamed Ouahbi has assembled a younger and more creative roster, but one that retains many players that helped them make history in 2022. The roster is so young that of the 23 outfielders in their 26-player squad, only three are over 30 years old (Ayoub El-Kaabi, Nayef Aguerd and Soufiane Rahimi).
There is also some controversy surrounding Morocco following the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final. Despite winning the game, Senegal were forced to forfeit due to protesting and Morocco were crowned champions for the first time in 50 years.
But coming into this World Cup, Morocco are on a 22-game unbeaten streak, are ranked higher by FIFA than they have ever been (No. 7) in 66 years and have high expectations.
Do they have what it takes to win the FIFA World Cup trophy this time around? Let’s find out.
Morocco’s Road to the World Cup
In Confederation of African Football (CAF) qualifying, Morocco was drawn into Group E with Congo, Eritrea, Tanzania, Zambia and Niger. Eritrea withdrew from qualifying before it started and the Congo had to forfeit a few matches, so each team played eight matches instead of 10.
Morocco were by far the best team in their group, winning all eight games by a goal differential of 22. They only conceded twice; once against Zambia, and the other against Niger.
While qualification was never in doubt, one variable was changing managers at the end of their qualifying campaign.
From Under-20 Glory to the Big Dance
Mohamed Ouahbi was named the next manager of the Moroccan senior national soccer team on March 5. He was given the reins after former head coach Walid Regragui resigned from his role.
Regragui left as a hero in Moroccan soccer lore for becoming the first African manager to reach the quarterfinals of the World Cup in 2022. Regragui left the Moroccan national team in good hands, ranked No. 8 by FIFA and Ouahbi will look to carry the momentum of their unbeaten streak into the World Cup.
Ouahbi hasn’t had much head coaching experience, but just last October, he proved very competent, guiding Morocco’s Under-20 national team to their first FIFA U-20 World Cup title.
The bulk of the 49-year-old’s coaching experience comes from the 17 years he spent in various roles with Belgian Giant, RSC Anderlecht’s academy, which produced the likes of Vincent Kompany and Romelu Lukaku. Ouahbi will look to get the most out of these senior Moroccan players as he did last year with the U-20s.
Strengths
An Organized Midfield
What it lacks in not having several midfielders who you would call World Class like Pedri of Spain, Morocco makes up for with discipline and depth. Ismael Saibari and Bilal El-Khannous will be the two center attacking midfielders or No. 10s. Both are in form; Saibari scored 15 goals and provided 8 assists for PSV Eindhoven in the Dutch Eredivisie this year, while El-Khannous produced well for Stuttgart in the Bundesliga, adding 16 goal contributions to a club that qualified for Champions League soccer next season. Saibari is the frontrunner to start with El-Khannous earning time off the bench in recent friendlies.
However, the Moroccan midfield will hinge on its two-way defensive midfielders Neil El-Aynaoui, who plays for Italian Serie A side Roma and Azzedine Ounahi, who plays for Girona in the Spanish top flight, La Liga. El-Aynaoui occupies the right side as a hard-working box-to-box midfielder; Ounahi will occupy the left as more of a playmaker who had four goal contributions in five world cup qualifying games.
The second-youngest player on the roster, 20-year-old Samir El-Mourabet is coming off an outstanding campaign with Strasbourg in France’s Ligue Un and could see time off the bench as a left defensive midfielder. It will also be interesting to see how Ouahbi deploys 18-year-old Ayyoub Bouaddi, who played 45 minutes in Morocco’s last friendly vs Norway.
This Morocco midfield may lack Hakim Ziyech, a hero from 2022, but it’s a group that reflects the diversity of Moroccan soccer, with many different players playing in topflight leagues across Europe.
A Stacked Forward Group
This group is stacked and is highlighted by Real Madrid’s Brahim Diaz who has scored 14 goals in 26 games for Morocco since switching allegiance from Spain in 2024. Diaz has been a key part of the Morocco team that rattled off 19 straight victories across all competitions from March 2024 to December 26, 2025 and scored in the team’s last friendly vs Norway before the World Cup.
If talented left winger Abde Ezzalzouli is fit, that will just add another layer of danger to this forward group. The 24-year-old had 18 goal contributions for Real Betis in Spain this past season.
Ayoub El Kaabi will be the third-oldest player on this roster and he comes in as the favorite to start as striker in Ouahbi’s 4-2-3-1 formation. He had a stellar year in the Greek Super League, netting 18 goals across all competitions. Thirty-year-old forward Soufiane Rahimi is not a bad option off the bench.
Chemsdine Talbi, Gessime Yassine and Ayoube Amaimouni are all rookies at the senior level, but Yassine is familiar with Ouahbi having started for him on Morocco’s U-20 team that won the world cup last October.
Defensive Discipline
Morocco’s backline is always organized and hustles for every loose ball. They are also very good at set pieces. At the AFCON, four of the nine goals Morocco scored were on set pieces.
Ouahbi brings with him to North America, an embarrassment of riches at full back. Hakimi is a superstar who just won the Champions League and Noussair Mazraoui made 20 appearances for Manchester United, who finished third in the premier league. Meanwhile, understudy Zakaria El-Ouahdi scored eight goals and provided four assists in Belgium’s Pro League A this past season.
As for the center backs, Issa Diop is a newcomer to Morocco, earning his first cap in the friendly vs Ecuador and has started the next three friendly matches leading up to the World Cup. However, Diop has been in the Premier League for the last eight seasons and is a threat to score on set pieces with his height (6-foot-4) which is greater than any other Moroccan player.
Twenty-two-year-old Chadi Riad made nine appearances for the Crystal Palace team that won UEFA Europa Conference League this season; 23-year-old Redouane Halhal was recently called up to Morocco where he has made two starts and three appearances in friendlies, following a strong domestic season in Belgium.
It’s a strong group because it has speed, size and experience, but it remains to be seen how it holds up against the best competition in the world.
Concerns
The Manager’s Lack of Senior Experience
Mohamed Ouahbi hasn’t had enough time to teach new tactics and soccer ideas to his team. Three months is not enough time to make an imprint on a team and while the intensity was high in friendly tune-ups against Ecuador, Paraguay, and Norway, they were nothing like that which it will be at the World Cup.
It’s also a question whether Ouahbi will really be able to handle the egos involved in a senior national side as he has only ever coached Under-20 and Under-23 teams.
The Midfield
The other is the lack of a really good playmaker in the midfield. El Aynaoui is coming off a year where he had just two assists in the Italian Serie A. He may be more of a ball-winner than a playmaker, but you need both to tango in this competition.
According to FotMob, in the AFCON tournament, El Aynaoui’s 42.9 accurate passes per 90 minutes was outdone by his counterpart on Senegal, Idrissa Gana Gueye who had 58.9.
Can El Aynaoui step up and contribute to spreading the ball from wing to wing so Morocco can play with width? Is Saibari really capable of playing like a number 10 and being an attacking threat against World Cup competition?
Without a world class midfield, Morocco will have trouble breaking down low blocks and I hesitate to say they will go through to the deep rounds with that being the case.
Key Players to Watch
Achraf Hakimi
At just 27-years-old, the Moroccan captain and right-back is already the third-most capped player in the 98-year history of the Moroccan national team. He has reached that standing with the national team by displaying great speed, attacking instincts and defense over a 10-year professional career and is eager to prove his worth further at his third World Cup.
Brahim Diaz
Morocco’s chief playmaker is their number 10. His agility allows him to draw fouls and set up set-piece opportunities for his team, which Morocco excels at, and he will be at the center of everything Morocco does attacking-wise at this World Cup.
Yassine Bounou
Bounou, the second oldest player on Morocco’s roster (35-years-old), was Morocco’s goalkeeper on their magical run to the 2022 World Cup semi-finals. After a successful run in Spain’s La Liga from 2019-24, Bounou took his talents to Saudi Arabia’s Pro League where he started 26/34 games and allowed a miniscule 0.77 goals-per-game for Al-Hilal this season. Bounou’s 87 caps for Morocco since his debut in 2013 are fifth all-time among Moroccan players and he will be the veteran backbone of an already strong Atlas Lion backline this summer.
Abde Ezzalzouli
Another forward who Morocco can throw at opponents, who is coming off of his breakout campaign in Spain this past season. After making three appearances off the bench in 2022, this could be the year he makes a statement on the World Cup stage as a starter.
Predicted Style of Play
Under Ouahbi, Morocco have deployed in a 4-2-3-1 formation.
At the AFCON, Morocco finished fifth out of 24 teams in average possession (57.0 percent). They finished tied for first in goals conceded per match (0.3) with finalist Senegal and third in expected goals (12.2) for the tournament, according to FotMob.com.
Morocco can’t rely on possession being one of their strong suits. Instead, they will rely on being compact and great in transition. Look no further than Diaz’s goal in the recent friendly vs Norway which was the product of a quick counterattack. They will also use the low-block to frustrate high-powered attacks and press to recover the ball high up the field. They don’t overuse it though, and instead press depending on the opponent and situation; if the opponent lacks vertical outlets from their own half or builds up slow and predictably, Morocco will go into a press.
Morocco Can Finish Top of Group C
With a Brazil that is not as strong as it once was and Scotland and Haiti coming into the tournament as serious underdogs, Morocco are the favorites to win the group. Their style of play is well-suited for a major international competition and the quality they have throughout their lineup will come to bear in close matchups.
The Atlas Lions’ opening game against this Saturday at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey will be pure theater as fans will get to see Brazil’s superstar left winger, Vinicius Junior try to beat Morocco’s superstar right-back, Achraf Hakimi.
With a favorable matchup likely incoming following finishing top of their group, Morocco should make it through the round of 32. It’s after that where I have questions about their lack of World Class quality, when you go up against the European and South American powerhouses of France and defending champions Argentina.
