How will Morocco fare at the 2022 World Cup? Join @SamRCox_ as he looks at the Atlas Lions in his everything you need to know guide ahead of this winter's competition...
Morocco History at the World Cup
The 2022 World Cup will be Morocco’s sixth entry into the competition, but just their second since the turn of the century.
This is only the second time ever that Morocco have qualified for back-to-back World Cups, with the previous occasion seeing group stage exits in 1994 and 1998.
It is just two wins in 16 World Cup matches thus far, a mark which is unlikely to improve much in Qatar if our World Cup result predictions are accurate.
🇲🇦 Morocco have managed to qualify to both the Men’s and Women’s World Cup simultaneously for the first time in their history! 🦁
— CAF Women’s Football (@CAFwomen) July 18, 2022
𝐅𝐥𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡. 🏆 pic.twitter.com/oBaeGKDcer
They have only made it out of the group stage on one occasion (back in 1986), which ended with a 1-0 defeat to West Germany in the round of 16.
Being the first African nation to reach the knockout phase, Morocco have been unable to build on that achievement, falling in the group phase in their last three World Cup entries.
Other than 1986, their highlight was a 3-0 win over Scotland in 1998, which is their biggest World Cup victory. Their biggest defeat came at the same tournament, falling 3-0 to Brazil.
Morocco Nickname
Morocco are nicknamed The Atlas Lions after their national animal, the Barbary Lion.
Now extinct, the Barbary Lion was found in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, which led to it often being referred to as an Atlas Lion.
Several other teams at the 2022 World Cup feature lions in their nickname, including Senegal, England and South Korea.
World Cup 2022 Group
Morocco were drawn into Group F at the 2022 World Cup, putting them alongside Belgium, Croatia and Canada.
While none of these teams are online betting favourites to win the tournament, this should still be a competitive section, with Belgium and Croatia favoured to progress.
Morocco Fixtures:
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Morocco vs Croatia – 23rd November 2022
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Morocco vs Belgium – 27th November 2022
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Morocco vs Canada – 1st December 2022
Morocco Kit World Cup 2022
The Morocco World Cup kits aren’t much to get excited about. Puma played safe with a 1998 throwback for the home kit, with the green bar standing out across the red body.
OFFICIAL: 🆕️ Morocco home kit for World Cup Qatar 2022 🇲🇦🔥 pic.twitter.com/xpb8WRwq7m
— 𝗠𝗩𝗡_𝗘𝗡 | 🇲🇦 𝗙𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀 (@MVN_EN) May 30, 2022
The away is white with red and green trim. It has a whiff of template design unfortunately. The unique, albeit faint, Morocco emblem on the centre of the shirt is nice enough, though.
Who is The Morocco Manager?
Walid Regragui is Morocco’s manager for the World Cup, after replacing Vahid Halilhodžić in August 2022. Halilhodžić fell out with the Federation about how the team should progress, and had conflict with key players.
Regragui has limited experience – he has managed under 70 matches in his career, two of which were with Morocco against Chile and Paraguay in September.
Best Morocco Player
The title of Morocco’s best player is a toss up between PSG’s Achraf Hakimi and Chelsea’s Hakim Ziyech.
Ziyech returned to the international fray after announcing his retirement earlier this year, while Hakimi hasn’t been involved in such drama, amassing over 50 caps before his 24th birthday.
"Outrageous, audacious and delicious" 🤤
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) January 18, 2022
Stop what you are doing and watch this ridiculous free-kick from Paris Saint-Germain's Achraf Hakimi to equalise LATE for Morocco 🤯 pic.twitter.com/RWgAVanmCx
Morocco Odds at 2022 World Cup
Morocco are priced at 15/2 to win Group F in World Cup betting.
Given a slight chance to progress, bookies clearly do not expect Morocco to pip Belgium to top spot in Group F. A run to the last eight is deemed improbable too, with 7/1 odds on Morocco to play in the quarters.
Only five teams have longer odds to lift the trophy.
Bet on Morocco at the 2022 World Cup with 888sport today!
