Nickname: The Atlas Lions
Appearances: 4 (1970, 1986, 1994, 1998)
Best Finish: Round of 16 (1986)
FIFA ranking: 42
Coach: Herve Renard
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The Moroccans find themselves in a deathly group, but for inspiration they could look back at their own history. In 1986, they had topped a pool that included England, Poland and Portugal. A stunning 3-1 win against Portugal made Morocco the first team from Africa to enter the second round of the World Cup.
Thirty two years later, Portugal is still a formidable group rival. Spain is another. The Iberian cousins between them have won the last three Euros.
There is strong European influence in the Moroccan side, too. Many of its players, including defender-captain Medhi Benatia, midfielders Hakim Ziyech, Mbark Boussoufa, Sofyan Amrabat, Younes Belhanda and Amine Harit as well as striker Khalid Boutaib, were born in Europe.
The considerably talented midfield and a well-organised defence – it qualified without conceding a goal as it topped the Confederation of African Football's Group C – make Morocco a dark horse. The Atlas Lions could do with bit more teeth up front, though.
THE GOAL-POACHER
Khalid Boutaib
When Gazelec Ajaccio earned a promotion to France's Ligue 1 for the first time in the club's century-old history, Boutaib saw it as an opportunity to impress his country of origin, Morocco.
The French-born striker's dream came true as Morocco selected him for national duty in 2016. He showed his worth too, scoring a hat-trick in the crucial game against Gabon to ensure the Lions' return to the grand stage after two decades. With four goals, the 31-year-old emerged as the team's top-scorer in the qualifiers.
THE ORCHESTRATOR
Hakim Ziyech
Sometime in the middle of last year at Amsterdam, over a cup of coffee, Herve Renard, succeeded in persuading Ziyech to return to the Moroccan squad. The Dutch-born midfielder had been sulking after his omission from the team for the African Cup of Nations earlier in the year.
He went on to play a key role in Morocco's successful campaign in the qualifiers. Just as he did in Ajax's journey to the second spot in Eredivisie. The 25-year-old scored nine goals, provided 15 assists and was named Dutch Footballer of the Year. Morocco expects a similar show.
Coach Herve Renard: I feel like I am going to live something I've been dreaming of since I was a kid. Participating in the World Cup is a pride. Morocco is certainly expecting great things from its national team. I think we are on the right track.
Did you know
Two days before it kicks off its campaign at St. Petersberg, Morocco will know whether it will get a free ticket for the 2026 World Cup. On June 13, FIFA will vote to decide who wins the bid to host the great show – Morocco or the US-Canada-Mexico combine.
If Morocco succeeds, it will become only the second African country to host the Word Cup. South Africa was the first, in 2010.
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61.5
percent of players Morocco used for the qualifiers were born outside the country; nearly 20 more than Senegal, the second in the list.
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Opening fixtures:
June 15 vs. Iran
June 20 vs. Portugal
June 25 vs. Spain
