2023 AFCON (Morocco/DR Congo): ‘a Real Test, but We’ll Be Looking to Qualify” (Head Coach Regragui)

The Moroccan national football team comfortably beat their Central African counterpart in a 5 to null thrashing on Saturday at Oujda’s Honor Stadium, in the 3rd day of Group B of the African qualifiers for the African Cup of Nations (AFCON).

Abdessamad Ezzalzouli (18’), Azzeddine Ounahi (38’, 45 ‘+2), Achraf Hakimi (45’) and Soufiane Rahimi (pen. 71’) signed their names on the scoresheet in this demolition job.

The Atlas Lions, who have already qualified for the 2025 AFCON finals as hosts, consolidated their position at the top of Group B with 9 points after wins over Gabon (4-1) and Lesotho (1-0) on the first two matchdays.

Morocco’s national football coach, Walid Regragui, has announced the 25-man squad for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers against the Central African Republic. The matches are set to take place on October 12 and 15 at the Stade d’Honneur in Oujda, as part of the qualification campaign for the 2025 AFCON, which Morocco will host.

Although Morocco has already secured its place in the 2025 AFCON as the host nation, the team is competing in Group B alongside Gabon, the Central African Republic, and Lesotho. The Atlas Lions have made an impressive start to the qualifiers, defeating Gabon 4-1 and Lesotho 1-0 in their first two matches.

Goalkeepers:

– Munir El Kajoui (RS Berkane)

– Yassine Bounou (Al Hilal FC, Saudi Arabia)

– Salaheddine Chihab (Maghreb of Fez)

Defenders:

– Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain, France)

– Mohamed Chibi (Pyramids, Egypt)

– Noussair Mazraoui (Manchester United, England)

– Abdelkabir Abqar (Deportivo Alavés, Spain)

– Nayef Aguerd (Real Sociedad, Spain)

– Adam Aznou (Bayern Munich, Germany)

– Abdelhamid Aït Boudlal (Stade Rennais, France)

– Jamal Harkass (Wydad Casablanca)

Midfielders:

– Sofyan Amrabat (Fenerbahçe, Türkiye)

– Ismael Saibari (PSV Eindhoven, Netherlands)

– Bilal El Khannous (Leicester City, England)

– Oussama Targhaline (Le Havre, France)

– Azzeddine Ounahi (Panathinaikos, Greece)

– Reda Belahyane (Hellas Verona, Italy)

Forwards:

– Ilias Akhomach (Villareal CF, Spain)

– Amine Adli (Leverkusen, Germany)

– Soufiane Rahimi (Al Ain, UAE)

– Ayoub El Kaabi (Olympiacos, Greece)

– Youssef En-Nesyri (Fenerbahçe, Türkiye)

– Iliesse Ben Seghir (AS Monaco, France)

– Abdessamad Ezzalzouli (Real Betis, Spain)

– Osame Sahraoui (Lille, France)

 Morocco remained Africa’s highest ranked team in the latest FIFA world rankings, released Thursday.

   The Atlas Lions were unchanged at 14th spot with 1676.14 points, ahead of Senegal, ranked 21st globally with 1,620.87 points. Egypt rounds out the top three on the continent, sitting 31st in the world with 1,515.64 points.

   On the global stage, Argentina remains the top-ranked team, followed by France and Spain.

FIFA World Rankings:

1 – Argentina

2- France

3- Spain

4 – England

5 – Brazil

6 – Belgium

7 – Netherlands

8 – Portugal

9 – Colombia

10 – Italy

The Moroccan national football team beat Lesotho 1-0, on Monday evening at the Grand Stadium of Agadir, in the 2nd day (group B) of the qualifiers for the Africa Cup of Nations Morocco-2025.

   Morocco’s winning goal was scored by Brahim Diaz (90 + 3rd).

   Morocco, already qualified as host country, is housed in group B alongside Gabon, Central African Republic and Lesotho.

   The final phase of 2025 AFCON will take place from December 21, 2025 to January 18, 2026.

The Moroccan national football team bested Gabon 4-1, in the 1st day of Group B qualifiers for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON-2025), held Friday at the Grand Stadium of Agadir.

Hakim Ziyech converted a penalty at the 10th minute to open the scoring for the Atlas Lions. Gabon had the opportunity to equalize at the 16th minute on penalty, but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s ball hit the post.

A second penalty, awarded to Morocco following a foul on Soufiane Rahimi, allowed Ziyech (26th) to score his second goal of the night.

The Panthers of Gabon reduced the score five minutes before the end of first half through Aubameyang on penalty.

In the second half, Brahim Diaz scored the third goal at the 59th minute, before substitute Ayoub El Kaabi scored the fourth goal for the Atlas Lions.

Morocco, already qualified as host country, is housed in Group B alongside Gabon, Central African Republic and Lesotho.

The final phase of AFCON-2025 will take place from December 21, 2025 to January 18, 2026 in Morocco.

Morocco made history on Thursday by winning bronze in men’s football at the Paris Olympic Games with a 6-0 thrashing over Egypt, asserting itself as the major powerhouse in African football, writes the Spanish sports daily “AS.” 

With this “resounding victory,” the Moroccan football team has achieved a great feat, attaining its goal of winning an Olympic medal for the first time, the Spanish newspaper says in an article titled “Morocco Becomes an African Football Giant.”

With this, the Moroccan team confirms that it is “going through a great moment, thanks to a very solid project that yielded good results,” the same source adds.

Recalling the remarkable feat of the Atlas Lions at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where they ranked fourth, AS notes that two years later, Morocco has won the bronze medal after an impressive tournament where they demonstrated their potential from the very start by defeating Argentina.

“In the bronze medal match on Thursday, the Moroccan team dominated Egypt, confirming that Moroccan football is experiencing its historic moment,” the article highlights.