The Morocco national football team, known as "the Atlas Lions", represents Morocco in men’s international football competitions. The team’s colours are red and green and it is controlled by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, also known as FRMF. The team is a member of both FIFA and the Confederation of African Football.
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This is a color scheme of Morocco. You can copy each of the Morocco national football team logo colors by clicking on a button with the color HEX code above.
Internationally, Morocco 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 1986, when they were the first African national team to finish top of a group at the World Cup. However, they narrowly lost to eventual runners-up West Germany 1-0. Thirty-six years later, at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Morocco once again defied expectations, topping a group that included Croatia, Canada and Belgium.
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The Atlas Lions were ranked 10th in the FIFA World Rankings in April 1998. They were ranked as the top African national team for three consecutive years, from 1997 to 1999, and again since December 2022.
The Moroccan national team was founded in 1928 and played its first game on 22 December of that year against France's B team, losing 2-1. This team, formed by the best footballers of the LMFA, or the Moroccan Football League (settlers or natives), was active in friendly matches against other North African teams such as Algeria and Tunisia.
These associations of settler clubs and local footballers, in addition to having their own championship, clashed with each other in a tournament that Morocco won several times, such as in 1948-1949. On 9 September 1954, an earthquake struck the Algerian region of Orléansville (now Chlef), destroying the city and killing 1,400 people.
On 7 October 1954, the French Football Association and the Maghreb inhabitants organized a charity match to raise funds for the families of the victims of the earthquake. In the match, held at the Parc de Princes in Paris, a team made up of Moroccans, Algerians and Tunisians played against France.
On 19 October 1957, at the second edition of the Arab Games in Lebanon, Morocco made its debut as an independent country against Iraq, at the Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium, and drew 3-3. At the tournament, Morocco recorded their first-ever win, defeating Libya 5-1, then beat Tunisia 3-1 to reach the semi-finals.
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After a 1-1 draw with Syria, lots were drawn to decide who would progress to the final, and Syria were selected at Morocco's expense. Between 1957 and 1958, Morocco held numerous friendly matches against the National Liberation Front team, the representative of Algeria before its independence in 1958.
In 1959, the team took part for the first time in an international competition, the qualifying rounds of the 1960 Rome Olympics. Drawn into a group with Tunisia and Malta, Morocco finished second on goal difference and failed to progress. In 1960, Morocco competed in World Cup qualification for the first time.
Drawn against Tunisia in the first round, Morocco won the first leg 2-1, while Tunisia won the second leg by the same score. A play-off held in Palermo, Italy finished in a draw, so a coin toss was used to determine who progressed. Morocco won the toss, and beat Ghana 1-0 on aggregate to reach the inter-continental play-offs.
The following year, Morocco held the Pan-Arab Games and won the football tournament, winning all five of their matches. In 1963, the Moroccan team came close to qualifying for the African Cup of Nations; in the decisive play-off against Tunisia, they were defeated 4-1 in Tunis and won 4-2 at home, therefore being eliminated.
Morocco participated in the final phase of an international competition for the first time at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. Having qualified under the leadership of manager Mohamed Massoun, the Moroccans were included in a group of three teams due to the withdrawal of North Korea.
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In 1966, the Moroccan Football Association joined the Confederation of African Football, and the team participated in qualifying for the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. Their debut eliminated Senegal (1-0) and Tunisia after a draw. In the final round of the preliminaries, against Sudan and Nigeria, Morocco obtained five points, finishing ahead of Nigeria.
Morocco thus became the first African national team to qualify for the World Cup after having played in an elimination tournament. On 3 June 1970, against West Germany, Morocco opened the scoring with a goal in the 21st minute of the game scored by Houmane Jarir. In the second half, however, the Germans scored twice and won 2-1.
The Atlas Lions then played against Peru, conceding three goals in ten minutes to lose 3-0. On 11 June 1970, the eliminated Moroccans drew with Bulgaria 1-1. In 1972 Africa Cup of Nations qualification, the Atlas Lions ousted Algeria, then faced Egypt, defeating them 3-0 in the first leg and suffering a 3-2 defeat on the way back.
However, the aggregate win meant they qualified for the final phase of the continental tournament for the first time. In the group stage, they accumulated three 1-1 draws against Congo, Sudan and Zaire and were eliminated in the first round. Qualifying for the 1972 Olympics in Munich with two wins and two draws, Morocco debuted in Group A with a goalless draw against the United States, then lost 3-0 against hosts West Germany and defeated Malaysia 6-0 with a Faras hat-trick, thereby advancing to the second round.
In the 1974 World Cup qualifiers, Morocco successfully passed three qualifying rounds before entering the final stage alongside Zambia and Zaire. Losing 4-0 away against Zambia, the Moroccans bounced back in the second game, defeating the same opponent 2-0 at home.
They then went to Zaire for their third game but lost 3-0, conceding all three goals in the second half, with Faras leaving the field due to injury. Morocco filed an appeal, trying to get the match to be replayed; it was dismissed by FIFA. In protest, Morocco withdrew from the qualifiers causing the Atlas Lions to miss their final game at home against Zaire which had already qualified for the finals, with FIFA awarding Zaire a 2-0 win on walkover.
For the same reason, Morocco also decided not to take part in the 1974 African Cup of Nations qualification. As a result, in 1974, Morocco played only two games, both against Algeria, achieving a 2-0 win and a 0-0 draw. Morocco, coached by the Romanian Virgil Mărdărescu and captained by Faras, took the continental throne at 1976 African Cup of Nations, in only the country's second participation in the competition.
After failing to qualify for the 1974 FIFA World Cup, they also missed the 1978 and 1982 tournaments. Morocco did not qualify for either the 1982 or 1984 Africa Cup of Nations. Morocco qualified for the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, and topped a group consisting Portugal, England and Poland, thanks to two draws against the English and Polish and a 3-1 win against the Portuguese.
However, they were narrowly eliminated by West Germany in the first knockout round, thanks to a goal from Lothar Matthäus one minute from the end of regulation time. Two years later, the Moroccan team presented itself at the 1988 African Cup of Nations as a host country with high expectations. Failure to qualify for the 1990 FIFA World Cup opened a period of crisis. In the 1992 African Cup of Nations, the team was eliminated in the first round.
They then did not participate in the 1994 or 1996 African Cup tournaments. Morocco national team in 2011Morocco took part in the 2004 African Cup of Nations, drawn into Group D defeating Nigeria 1-0, defeating Benin 4-0 and drawing 1-1 with South Africa.
In 2014, Morocco debuted in the African Nations Championship after failing to qualify in the 2009 and 2011 editions. At the 2020 African Nations Championship in Cameroon, Morocco won their second CHAN title, in its second consecutive final appearance. Captained by Ayoub El Kaabi, they defeated Togo (1-0), Rwanda (0-0), the Uganda (5-2), Zambia (3-1), and Cameroon (4-0) on the way to a final against Mali in Yaoundé.
In December 2021, Morocco started its venture at the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup's Group C, along with Jordan, Palestine and Saudi Arabia. After qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup by winning the third round of CAF qualifiers, the team was drawn in Group F along with Croatia, Belgium, and Canada.
After holding previous runners-up Croatia to a 0-0 draw and defeating Belgium 2-0, a 2-1 win over Canada meant they finished top of the group and advanced to the round of 16 for the first time since 1986. In the round of 16, they met Spain, drawing 0-0.
In October 2025, Morocco broke the world record for the longest winning streak in international football, surpassing Spain’s previous mark of 15 consecutive victories set between June 2008 and June 2009. With a 1-0 win over Congo in Rabat, Morocco extended their unbeaten run to 16 straight wins across all competitions, including World Cup qualifiers and friendlies.
The streak, which began in June 2024, is ongoing, with Morocco continuing to extend their record as of October 2025. From 2011, the Atlas Lions played most of their matches in the new Marrakesh Stadium, which has a capacity of 45,240 seats. During Ezzaki Badou's tenure as coach from 2014 to 2016, Morocco played most of its matches at the Adrar Stadium in Agadir, which has a capacity of 45,480.
Morocco's home colours are most red shirts and green shorts and socks.
The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (Arabic: الجامعة الملكية المغربية لكرة القدم; French: Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football) is the governing body of football in Morocco. It was established in 1956.
It became a member in the FIFA in 1960, and in the same year it also became a member of CAF. It organizes the football league, the Botola Pro, the Morocco national football team and the Morocco women's national football team. It is based in Rabat.
In October 2014, the government of Morocco requested a postponement of the tournament due to the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa. After the matter was discussed at the executive committee meeting on 2 November 2014, CAF decided to keep the date of the tournament, while also asking for a clarification from the Royal Moroccan Football Federation of whether they still wish to host the tournament.
On 8 November, Morocco failed to meet this deadline to confirm it would host the tournament. Three days later CAF confirmed that Morocco would not host the tournament and a new host would be chosen from a list of countries which have expressed interest. On 15 January 2021, Morocco was announced as hosts for the 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations.
In 1994, Morocco, United States and Brazil bade to host the 1994 FIFA World Cup. The United States eventually won the bid with 10 votes, Morocco in second place with 7 votes and Brazil with 2. Morocco was set to bid on the upcoming 1998 FIFA World Cup.
In 2006, Morocco made their third bid to host the FIFA World Cup.
Nicknamed Moul Lkoura, meaning the owner of the ball, Ahmed Faras achieved iconic status in Morocco. Across Morocco he is held in the highest regard for both his technical skills on the field and his character. With his passing at the age of 78, many have highlighted his humility, respect, kindness and modesty.
Faras also had another nickname: the Lion of the Atlas. He was a much-loved captain of the Atlas Lions, the national football team. He was crowned African Footballer of the Year in 1975. Hadj Ahmed Faras, born on 7 December 1946, prioritised values over money.
Born and raised in a modest home in Laalya in the city of Mohammedia on the west coast of Morocco, the community of Fdala (as the city was once known) will never forget that Faras chose instead to put his talent at the service of Sporting Club Chabab Mohammedia. This was his hometown club, where he began his career in 1965 and where he ended it in 1982.
Faras was an all-round athlete. If his star shone in football, he was also passionate about basketball, handball, volleyball and long jump. But it was football that earned him his childhood nickname, “the left-hander”, because of the elegance with which he handled the ball with his left foot.
Playing in neighbourhood teams at school, he followed Moroccan football closely. This was the era of players like Hassan Akesbi, Abderrahmane Ben Mahjoub and Larbi Ben Mbarek. Not satisfied with the level of his games, he joined a youth centre funded by the Ministry of Youth and Sports to formalise his football passion.
In 1963 he was approached by Ittihad Mohammedia and while he was still thinking about the offer to join their ranks, he was approached by rival club Chabab Mohammedia. They were willing to promote him directly to the first team without going through the junior team. His great technical qualities, his magical left foot, his tactical intelligence, his wisdom and calm earned him an exemplary career.
In 1970 he was a member of the first Moroccan national team to qualify for the Fifa Men’s Football World Cup, in Mexico. He would score two goals, ensuring that Morocco qualified for the 1972 Olympics in Munich. He went on to score goals in those Olympics, six in the various editions of the Africa Cup of Nations tournament (Afcon) and a further six in later World Cup qualification matches.
Crowned the best African player of 1975, he captained the team that lifted the Afcon trophy for Morocco in 1976 in Ethiopia. He was named the best player of the tournament. Faras was the top scorer of the national football championship in 1969 and 1973.
He played 94 matches for the national team between 1966 and 1979, during which he scored 36 goals, making him the sacred top scorer. He won the SCCM’s only Moroccan championship title in 1980, two Throne Cup titles in 1972 and 1975, the Super Cup in 1975, and the Maghrebian Club Cup in 1975.
Despite all these impressive numbers, Faras was never known to brag - or even speak - about his exploits on the field. He went out of his way to always be respectful and never declined an invitation to serve Morocco’s football community. Like his parents, he was a family man who lived a modest life.
Faras couldn’t stand being away from Mohammedia and felt immense joy returning home after touring. His patriotic nature was often on display, nowhere more than the 1976 Afcon in Ethiopia, where he played despite having typhoid fever. He was known for reminding his teammates that wearing the national jersey is a great responsibility.
As captain, he spared no effort to motivate young players and help them integrate into the national team and play with honour. Because of these qualities, Ahmed Faras became a national treasure, an incarnation of noble sports values. A sure sign was how respected he was by referees.
Moul Lkoura passed away on 16 July, as Moroccans were hoping he would attend the Women’s Africa Cup of nations proceedings being hosted by Morocco.
Key moments in Morocco's football history:
