2026 FIFA World Cup Countdown: Morocco's Magnificent March to the Semi's

9 Days to Go: The Atlas Lions Shock the World

How convenient – just one day after discussing the five nations who could go far at the 2026 World Cup in North America, I am given the perfect follow-up story: Morocco’s giant-killing run to the semi-finals four (well, three and a half) years ago.

Of course, Morocco was amongst the five names on that list, in large part thanks to their result in Qatar, as well as the fact that, while controversial, they are considered the reigning champions of Africa.

Senegal’s 94th minute goal was DISALLOWED for a foul on Hakimi.

4 minutes later, in the 98th minute Morocco have been given a penalty.

The Senegal manager has now told ALL the players to walk off the pitch 😭😭😭

AFCON IS TOO FUNNY 😭😭😭pic.twitter.com/V56rY29GWu

— The 44 ⚽️ (@The_Forty_Four) January 18, 2026

However, prior to the 2022 tournament, Morocco were considered rank outsiders, and few tipped them for a deep run in the Middle East. Ranked 28th in the world at the time, a 'group of death' made up of Croatia, Belgium and Canada was even judged to be a step too far for them, their campaign being written off before it even began.

However, led by PSG star Achraf Hakimi and organised by Moroccan coaching icon Walid Regragui, the Atlas Lions confounded critics all over the world. Instead of crashing out early, they left a trail of destruction and broken dreams in their wake.

In Need of a Bounce Back

Ranked 10th in the world just a few months before the 1998 World Cup, Moroccan football did something of a disappearing act. At one moment, it was at the front and centre of world football, competing with some of Europe’s finest for the big titles; the next, it vanished, falling off the face of the footballing scene as if it never existed.

Though the North African nation did their best to keep the sinking ship afloat, hovering around the 30s and 40s in the rankings for a number of years, talent simply stopped coming through the pipeline, and by the time the 2010 World Cup had wrapped up, Morocco had failed to qualify and was on the brink of vacating the top 100 nations altogether.

Eventually, the nation began to produce some promising young footballers again, and this was reflected by a return to the World Cup stage for the first time since 1998 in Russia eight years ago, although one point and a fourth-place finish illustrated how far there still was to go.

The first sign that Morocco were ready to compete again came two years later at the 2020 Africa Nations Championship (CHAN), not to be confused with AFCON. Topping a group consisting of Uganda, Togo and Rwanda, before defeating Zambia in the quarters, Cameroon in the semis and Mali 3-1 in the final.

🚨🏆 𝐎𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 | Group C for the 2026 World Cup! ✅

🇧🇷 BRAZIL
🇲🇦 MOROCCO
🇭🇹 HAITI
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 SCOTLAND

— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) December 5, 2025

It may not have been Africa’s premium international competition, but it was somewhere to start. The critics reared their heads again after they were dumped out in the quarter-finals of the 2021 AFCON by Egypt, but now, well on their way to a footballing revival, their return to the global footballing scene would take on a whole new dimension with the appointment of Regragui just in time for the 2022 World Cup.

Everyone’s Favourite Underdog

By the time they had arrived in Qatar, the Moroccans had gone a long way towards their footballing reputation, dragging themselves back up to a respectable world ranking of 22nd in the world, a position which, 10 years previously, many would have thought out of reach.

However, placed alongside Belgium, Croatia and Canada, the general feeling was that despite boasting a talented team, the draw had been harsh to them, and that just like 2018, they would be heading home after the group stages again.

To the surprise of many, they exceeded expectations by limiting 2018 runners-up Croatia to a goalless draw, their organisation and excess energy proving too much for the Europeans to break down, while Yassine Bounou proved to be an imposing wall between the posts.

However, Morocco truly took on their dark horse status when they faced Belgium and their ageing golden generation, winning 2-0 thanks to second-half goals for Romain Saiss and Zakaria Aboukhlal. It was just their third World Cup win in history, and it was one that sparked joy back home, while in Belgium, it sparked riots, particularly thanks to the large Moroccan community that has taken root in the country.

They finished the group stage unbeaten courtesy of a 2-1 win against Canada, with the goals this time coming through Chelsea’s Hakim Ziyech and Sevilla’s Youssef En-Nesyri. Though they did concede their first goal of the tournament, they were yet to concede a goal to an opposition player, as their concession against the Maple Leafs came through their own centre-back Nayef Aguerd.

Morocco 2022 ⚽

The biggest Cinderella story in recent World Cup history.

Beat Belgium, Spain & Portugal to reach the semi-finals.

Can any African team go even further in 2026? 👀 pic.twitter.com/puUGmL33sl

— Chalky (@chalkymedia) June 2, 2026

Already, Regragui’s side had exceeded expectations – reaching the knockouts for the first time ever. This was already their greatest showing on the World Cup stage, and many would be forgiven for thinking that their round of 16 game against Spain marked the end of the line.

However, instead of resting on their laurels, Morocco put in a performance for the ages, limiting Spain and counter-attacking where possible and once again keeping a clean sheet. However, they failed to score at the other end, and that meant just one thing – a penalty shootout.

Spain, who had been knocked out of the 2018 tournament by the same medium against Russia, lost their heads completely and failed to convert a single one, with Bounou making two excellent saves, while Abdelhamid Sabiri, Ziyech, and finally Hakimi, with an audacious panenka down the middle, sent Morocco further on their merry way.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal awaited in the quarters – another imposing European side with more than enough strength in depth to humble the African underdogs. However, once again, Morocco held firm, limiting their opponents to 0.92 XG, and with just three minutes before halftime, they once again opened the scoring through a flying En-Nesyri header, a finish that would prove to be the only goal of the game.

At the time, Spain were ranked seventh in the world, while Portugal sat in ninth – Morocco had dismantled both of them with rigid organisation and remarkable precision, their defensive game plan working perfectly.

🌎🏆 2026 FIFA World Cup Countdown

Day 91/100: Morocco's Mental March to the Semi's 🇲🇦

95th in the world after the 2010 World Cup. A former footballing power gone to ruins. The 2022 World Cup was meant to be nothing more than a stepping stone to revival for Morocco.

But… pic.twitter.com/YsG7XnI1ob

— Football Park (@thefootballpark) June 3, 2026

However, reigning champions France did prove to be a step too far in the semi-finals – their raw star power, which included the likes of Kylian Mbappé and future Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé, was too much for the ragtag Moroccan midfield, which at the time consisted of Fiorentina’s Sofyan Amrabat and FC Angers’ Azzedine Ounahi.

Yet even here, Morocco showed that they were no longer to be underestimated and fought to the dying kick of the game – Sofyan Amrabat keeping up with Mbappe in a sprint before absolutely felling him remains a highlight of the game to this day.

When Sofyan Amrabat almost matched Kylian Mbappe’s pace and successfully stopped him at the 2022 FIFA World Cup 😮‍💨🇲🇦 pic.twitter.com/skshRCABBe

— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) April 6, 2026

Unfortunately, the defeat knocked all of the heart out of them, and in the third-place play-off, they fell to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Croatia, with the Europeans avenging their frustrating goalless draw in the group stage.

Nevertheless, despite losing out on a bronze medal to show for their efforts, Morocco had won something much more telling – the hearts of football fans. Their stirring efforts had earned them the respect of everyone who watched them, and their lack of gamesmanship and excellent etiquette only painted them in a more positive light.

Since then, things have snowballed – though they lost their next four games after elimination from the tournament, they quickly turned things around, and since March 2023, they have lost a grand total of three times, not including their divisive ‘victory’ over Senegal in the AFCON final.

However, they have suffered a major blow in the lead-up to this tournament, as in March, Regragui abdicated his throne as Morocco manager, being replaced with unproven U23s manager Mohamed Ouahbi.

The move marks Morocco out as unknown quantities once again. While Ouahbi has is undefeated in his three games in charge prior to the tournament, there is very little to go off in terms of tactical research. What system will he use with the players at his disposal? What is his plan B? At the moment, no one knows.

But perhaps that is what makes Morocco so dangerous: the fact that no one knows how they will shape up.

One thing is certain though: ranked eighth in the world, reigning champions of Africa and many people’s dark horses to win the whole thing, the Atlas Lions will find it impossible to replicate the shock factor they brought to Qatar four years ago. It was a feel-good campaign that, regardless of which side you were on, will live long in the memory.