Football in Morocco

Football in Morocco
Football is the most popular sport in Morocco. The governing body of Moroccan football is the Royal Moroccan Football Federation. Football in Morocco has witnessed significant development in recent years, with increased international fame. Morocco hosted the 2013 FIFA Club World Cup, in which Moroccan team Raja reached the final, finishing runners-up to German Bundesliga heavyweights Bayern Munich. The most popular clubs in the country are Raja Casablanca, Wydad Casablanca and ASFAR.
The Morocco national football team have won the 1976 African Cup of Nations, two African Nations Championships, and the FIFA Arab Cup once. They have participated in the FIFA World Cup six times. Their best result came in the 2022 World Cup, when they became the first African and Arab national team to reach the semi-finals.
National competitions
Botola
Nationally, professional football is divided into 2 leagues: the top-tier GNF 1 and the second-tier GNF 2. The top-tier league is known as the Botola. 19 of 31 clubs have managed to win the league: Wydad AC (17), AS FAR (13), Raja CA (12), Maghreb Fes (4), KAC Kenitra (4), Kawkab Marrakech (2), Hassania Agadir (2), Moghreb Tétouan (2), FUS Rabat (1), Olympique Khouribga (1), Racing de Casablanca (1), Renaissance de Settat (1), IR Tanger (1), Olympique de Casablanca (1), Mouloudia Oujda (1), CODM de Meknès (1), Chabab Mohammédia (1), Raja de Beni Mellal (1), and Étoile de Casablanca (1).
Coupe du Trône
The Moroccan Throne Cup is a football cup competition in Morocco open to both professional and amateur squads. 18 clubs have won the cup: AS FAR (12), Wydad Casablanca (9), Raja Casablanca (8), FUS de Rabat (6), Kawkab Marrakesh (6), MAS Fès (4), Mouloudia Oujda (4), Renaissance Berkane (3), Olympique Casablanca (3), Olympique Khouribga (2), Chabab Mohammédia (2), Difaa El Jadida (1), KAC Kenitra (1), Renaissance de Settat (1), CODM Meknès (1), Racing Casablanca (1), TAS Casablanca (1), and Majd Casablanca (1).
International competitions
Morocco men's national football team
The Morocco national football team, nicknamed Lions de l'Atlas (Atlas Lions), is the national team of Morocco and is controlled by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation. They were the first African team to qualify directly for the World Cup finals, doing so in 1970. They were also the first African team to win a group at the World Cup, finishing ahead of Portugal, Poland, and England in 1986. Morocco fell to eventual runner-up West Germany 1-0 in the second round. In 2022 Morocco finished top of Group F, ahead of Croatia, Belgium and Canada. In the Round of 16, they beat Spain in a penalty shootout, becoming the first Arab country to reach the quarter-finals. The Atlas Lions then defeated Portugal by one goal, before bowing out to France in a close-fought semi-final .
Morocco won the African Nations Cup once, in 1976. They also won the African Nations Championship in 2018 and 2020, making them the first nation to win back-to-back titles.
Morocco women's national football team
The Morocco women's national football team represents Morocco in international women's football and is controlled by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation. The team played its first international match in 1998, as part of the 3rd African Women's Championship. In the 14th edition of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations, the Morocco women's team managed to secure a silver medal after a 2-1 loss against South Africa in the 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations. They also qualified for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup and will be the first Arab country ever to participate in the Women's World Cup. In their first participation in the FIFA Women's World Cup, They placed 2nd after losing 6-0 to Germany, winning 1-0 against South Korea and winning 1-0 against Colombia. This qualified them to the Knock-out stages.
Clubs
Moroccan clubs are the second most decorated in African competitions with 24 titles: 1 African Cup Winners' Cup, 2 CAF Cup, 7 CAF Confederation Cup, 7 CAF Champions League, 5 CAF Super Cup and 2 Afro-Asian Club Championship.
Largest Moroccan football stadiums
References
External links
Maroc.net