Morocco national under-23 football team

Last updated
Morocco U-23
Flag of Morocco.svg
Nickname(s) أسود الأطلس
(The Atlas Lions)
Association Royal Moroccan Football Federation
Other affiliation Moroccan National Olympic Committee
Confederation CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation UNAF (North Africa)
Head coach Tarik Sektioui
Captain Abde Ezzalzouli
Home stadium Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium
FIFA code MAR
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First colours
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Second colours
First international
Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco 2–0 Tunisia  Flag of Tunisia.svg
(Rabat, Morocco; 6 September 1960)
Biggest win
Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco 6–0 Malaysia  Flag of Malaysia.svg
(Ingolstadt, West Germany; 31 August 1972) Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco 6–0 Egypt  Flag of Egypt.svg
(Nantes, France; 8 August 2024)
Biggest defeat
Hungary  Flag of Hungary.svg 6–0 Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg
(Tokyo, Japan; 11 October 1964)
Records for competitive matches only.
Olympic Games
Appearances8 (first in 1964 )
Best resultBronze medal.svg Bronze medalists (2024 [1] )
U-23 Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances2 (first in 2011 )
Best result Gold medal africa.svg Champions (2023)

The Morocco national under-23 football team, also known as the Morocco Olympic football team, represents Morocco in international football competitions such as the Olympic Games. The selection is limited to players under the age of 23, except during the Olympic Games where up to three overage players is allowed. The team is controlled by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation.

Contents

History

Summer Olympics (1964–2004)

Morocco's first appearance was in the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. In a group that consisted of three teams following North Korea's withdrawal. They suffered a heavy 0-6 defeat to Hungary - Morocco's all-time heaviest defeat to date -, then lost 1-3 to Yugoslavia and were eliminated.

Their second appearance was supposed to be during the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico but Morocco refused to allow its team to play against Israel in Group C due to political issues. [2] They were eventually replaced by Ghana which lost 2-3 on aggregate to Morocco in the last qualifying round.

In the 1972 edition in Munich, Morocco reached the second round as runners-up in their group with 3 points following a goalless draw against the United States, a resounding 6-0 win against Malaysia and a 0-3 loss to hosts West Germany. In the second round, The Atlas Lions lost all three games against Denmark, Poland and the Soviet Union. However, it was the best performance of the Atlas Lions at the Olympic football tournament until 2024.

Morocco came extremely close to reaching the quarter-finals in the 2004 Summer Olympics, narrowly missing out on goals scored that favored Costa Rica. Morocco were 2-1 ahead in their final group game against already-qualified Iraq thanks to goals scored by Bouabid Bouden and Salaheddine Aqqal. However, in the other game, Costa Rica's Pablo Brenes scored the fourth goal in added time to seal a 4-2 win over Portugal and qualification at Morocco's expense. [3]

First Continental Final

During the inaugural 2011 CAF U-23 Championship held in Morocco. [4] The host nation coached by Pim Verbeek, recorded narrow 1-0 victories against both Nigeria and Algeria, before losing to Senegal. [5] In the semi-finals, Morocco successfully secured a spot in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London by defeating Egypt 3-2 in a tense game which also saw Abdelaziz Barrada scoring the fastest goal in the history of the tournament to date after just 30 seconds. This marked the return of the Atlas Lions to the Olympic football tournament having missed out on qualifying in 2008. [6] However, they faced a setback when they suffered a 2-1 defeat against the surprising contender, Gabon, in the final held at the Marrakech Stadium. [7]

Golden generation (2022–)

On 7 July 2022, Morocco were awarded the hosting rights of the 2023 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations, marking the return of the U-23 team to the competition for the first time in 12 years. [8] [9] [10] Their campaign kicked off on a positive note with a hard-fought 2-1 victory against Guinea, [11] followed by a resounding 5-1 triumph over Ghana, emerging as group winners and securing a place in the semifinals with one game to spare. [12] [13] They went on to win the semi-final against Mali and qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games. [14] [15] They defeated Egypt 2-1 in the final to win their first ever continental title. [16] [17] The team was congratulated by King Mohammed VI for their achievement. [18] [19]

On 29 February 2024, Tarik Sektioui was appointed head coach of the men's Olympic squad by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation. [20] In Paris 2024, Morocco debuted in group B with a 2–1 victory against Argentina, [21] followed by a 2–1 defeat against Ukraine and a 3–0 victory against Iraq. [22] [23] Topping their group with six points ahead of Argentina on the head-to-head record, Morocco thus reached the knockout stage for the first time since 1972. They defeated the United States 4-0 in the quarterfinals, reaching the semifinals for the first time ever. [24] In the semifinal, Morocco lost 2–1 against Spain. [25] They then won 6–0 against Egypt in the third place to win the bronze medal. [26]

Results and fixtures

Legend

  Win  Draw  Lose  Voided or Postponed  Fixture

2023

7 September Friendly Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg1–0Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil Fez, Morocco
20:00  UTC+1
  • El Ouahdi Soccerball shade.svg73'
Stadium: Fez Stadium
Referee: Sow Sandigui (Senegal)
11 September Friendly Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svgCancelledFlag of Brazil.svg  Brazil Fez, Morocco
Stadium: Fez Stadium
12 October Friendly Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg0–1Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq Casablanca, Morocco
Report Stadium: Père Jégo Stadium
16 November Friendly Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg0–3Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark San Pedro del Pinatar, Spain
15:00 Report
Stadium: Pinatar Arena
21 November Friendly Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg1–0Flag of the United States.svg  United States San Pedro del Pinatar, Spain
15:00
Report Stadium: Pinatar Arena

2024

22 March Friendly Ukraine  Flag of Ukraine.svg1–0Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco Antalya, Turkey
Report Stadium: Gloria Sports Arena
26 March Friendly Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg2–0Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales Antalya, Turkey
Igamane Soccerball shade.svg Report Stadium: Gloria Sports Arena
4 June Friendly Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg2–2Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium Rabat, Morocco
Kechta Soccerball shade.svg63'
Maouhoub Soccerball shade.svg90'
Report Smets Soccerball shade.svg42'
Dwomoh Soccerball shade.svg53'
Stadium: Moulay Hassan Stadium
10 June Friendly Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svgCancelledFlag of Kosovo.svg  Kosovo Rabat, Morocco
Stadium: Moulay Hassan Stadium
24 July 2024 Summer Olympics Group B Argentina  Flag of Argentina.svg1–2Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco Saint-Étienne, France
15:00
Report
Stadium: Stade Geoffroy-Guichard
Attendance: 26,717
Referee: Glenn Nyberg (Sweden)
27 July 2024 Summer Olympics Group B Ukraine  Flag of Ukraine.svg2–1Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco Saint-Étienne, France
17:00
Report
Stadium: Stade Geoffroy-Guichard
Attendance: 28,655
Referee: Saíd Martínez (Honduras)
30 July 2024 Summer Olympics Group B Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg3–0Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq Nice, France
17:00 Report Stadium: Allianz Riviera
Attendance: 19,300
Referee: Ramon Abatti (Brazil)
2 August 2024 Summer Olympics QF Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg4–0Flag of the United States.svg  United States Paris, France
15:00
Report Stadium: Parc des Princes
Attendance: 42,868
Referee: Yael Falcón (Argentina)
5 August 2024 Summer Olympics SF Morocco  Flag of Morocco.svg1–2Flag of Spain.svg  Spain Marseille, France
18:00
Report
Stadium: Stade de Marseille
Attendance: 59,882
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)
8 August 2024 Summer Olympics Bronze Egypt  Flag of Egypt.svg0–6Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco Nantes, France
17:00 Report
Stadium: Stade de la Beaujoire
Attendance: 27,391
Referee: Espen Eskås (Norway)

Coaching staff

PositionName
Head coach Flag of Morocco.svg Tarik Sektioui
Assistant coach(es) Flag of Morocco.svg Youssouf Hadji
Flag of Morocco.svg Fahd El Ouarga
Fitness coach Flag of France.svg Grégory Delhomel
Goalkeeping coach Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Laurent Deraedt
Technical director Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Chris Van Puyvelde
Video analyst Flag of France.svg Damien Januel

Players

Current squad

No.Pos.PlayerDate of birth (age)CapsGoalsClub
11 GK Munir Mohamedi* (1989-05-10) 10 May 1989 (age 36)60 Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Al Wehda
121 GK Rachid Ghanimi (2001-04-25) 25 April 2001 (age 24)10 Flag of Morocco.svg FUS Rabat
221 GK Mohamed Reda Asmama (2002-02-08) 8 February 2002 (age 23)20 Flag of Morocco.svg Union de Touarga

22 DF Achraf Hakimi* (captain) (1998-11-04) 4 November 1998 (age 26)82 Flag of France.svg Paris Saint-Germain
32 DF Akram Nakach (2002-04-07) 7 April 2002 (age 23)51 Flag of Morocco.svg Union de Touarga
42 DF Mehdi Boukamir (2004-01-26) 26 January 2004 (age 21)140 Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Charleroi
52 DF Adil Tahif (2001-02-24) 24 February 2001 (age 24)70 Flag of Morocco.svg RS Berkane
112 DF Zakaria El Ouahdi (2001-12-31) 31 December 2001 (age 23)193 Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Genk
192 DF Haytam Manaout (2001-04-18) 18 April 2001 (age 24)30 Flag of Morocco.svg Union de Touarga
212 DF Bilal El Ouadghiri (2001-08-03)3 August 2001 (aged 22)10 Flag of Morocco.svg FUS Rabat

63 MF Benjamin Bouchouari (2001-11-13) 13 November 2001 (age 23)140 Flag of France.svg Saint-Étienne
83 MF Bilal El Khannous (2004-05-10) 10 May 2004 (age 21)71 Flag of England.svg Leicester City
133 MF Yassine Kechta (2002-02-25) 25 February 2002 (age 23)121 Flag of France.svg Le Havre
143 MF Oussama Targhalline (2002-05-20) 20 May 2002 (age 23)161 Flag of France.svg Le Havre
173 MF Oussama El Azzouzi (2001-05-29) 29 May 2001 (age 24)120 Flag of Italy.svg Bologna
183 MF Amir Richardson (2002-01-24) 24 January 2002 (age 23)142 Flag of Italy.svg Fiorentina
203 MF El Mehdi El Moubarik (2001-01-22) 22 January 2001 (age 24)40 Flag of Morocco.svg Raja Casablanca

74 FW Eliesse Ben Seghir (2005-02-16) 16 February 2005 (age 20)60 Flag of Monaco.svg Monaco [a]
94 FW Soufiane Rahimi* (1996-06-02) 2 June 1996 (age 29)68 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Al Ain
104 FW Ilias Akhomach (2004-04-16) 16 April 2004 (age 21)71 Flag of Spain.svg Villarreal
154 FW El Mehdi Maouhoub (2003-06-05) 5 June 2003 (age 22)72 Flag of Morocco.svg Raja Casablanca
164 FW Abde Ezzalzouli (2001-12-25) 25 December 2001 (age 23)115 Flag of Spain.svg Real Betis

* Overage player.

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team within the last 12 months and are still available for selection.

Pos.PlayerDate of birth (age)CapsGoalsClub [b] Latest call-up
GK Walid Hasbi (2004-01-07) 7 January 2004 (age 21)40 Flag of France.svg Racing Strasbourg Bv. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
GK Alaa Bellaarouch (2002-02-01) 1 February 2002 (age 23)80 Flag of France.svg Racing Strasbourg v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024PRE

DF Ayoub Amraoui (2004-05-14) 14 May 2004 (age 21)120 Flag of France.svg Amiens v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
DF Chadi Riad (2003-06-17) 17 June 2003 (age 22)60 Flag of Spain.svg Betis v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
DF Mohamed Jaouab (2002-05-14) 14 May 2002 (age 23)41 Flag of France.svg Amiens v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
DF Ayman El Wafi (2004-05-11) 11 May 2004 (age 21)110 Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Lugano v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
DF Omar El Hilali (2003-09-12) 12 September 2003 (age 21)40 Flag of Spain.svg Espanyol v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
DF Adam Aznou (2006-06-02) 2 June 2006 (age 19)10 Flag of Germany.svg Bayern Munich II v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024

MF Ismael Saibari (2001-01-28) 28 January 2001 (age 24)114 Flag of the Netherlands.svg PSV Eindhoven v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
MF Mohamed Nassoh (2003-01-26) 26 January 2003 (age 22)50 Flag of the Netherlands.svg PSV Eindhoven v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
MF Amine Souane (2001-09-17) 17 September 2001 (age 23)00 Flag of Morocco.svg MC Oujda v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024

FW Yanis Begraoui (2001-07-04) 4 July 2001 (age 24)144 Flag of France.svg Pau v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
FW Amine El Ouazzani (2001-07-15) 15 July 2001 (age 24)132 Flag of France.svg Guingamp v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
FW Ibrahim Salah (2001-08-30) 30 August 2001 (age 23)90 Flag of France.svg Rennes v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
FW Salim El Jebari (2004-02-05) 5 February 2004 (age 21)50 Flag of Spain.svg Atlético Madrid v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
FW Montasser Lahtimi (2001-04-01) 1 April 2001 (age 24)20 Flag of Morocco.svg Wydad Casablanca v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024
FW Tawfik Bentayeb (2002-01-14) 14 January 2002 (age 23)20 Flag of Morocco.svg Union de Touarga v. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium, 4 June 2024PRE

Notes
  • PRE = Preliminary squad/standby.

Previous squads

Overage players in Olympic Games

TournamentPlayer 1Player 2Player 3
El Houssaine Ouchla (DF) Adel Chbouki (MF) Salaheddine Bassir (FW)
Nadir Lamyaghri (GK) Otmane El Assas (MF) Bouchaib El Moubarki (FW)
Houssine Kharja (MF) Nordin Amrabat (FW)did not select
Munir Mohamedi (GK) Achraf Hakimi (DF) Soufiane Rahimi (FW)

Competitive record

Olympic Games

Olympic Games record
YearRoundPositionPldWDLGFGA
Until 1988 See Morocco national football team
Flag of Spain.svg 1992 Group stage15th301228
Flag of the United States.svg 1996 Did not qualify
Flag of Australia (converted).svg 2000 Group stage16th300317
Flag of Greece.svg 2004 Group stage10th311133
Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg 2008 Did not qualify
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg 2012 Group stage11th302123
Flag of Brazil.svg 2016 Did not qualify
Flag of Japan.svg 2020
Flag of France.svg 2024 Bronze medal3rd6402175
Flag of the United States.svg 2028 To be determined
Flag of Australia (converted).svg 2032
TotalBronze medal5/9185492526

U-23 Africa Cup of Nations

U-23 Africa Cup of Nations record
Appearances: 2
YearRoundPldWDLGFGA
Flag of Morocco.svg 2011 Runners-up530265
Flag of Senegal.svg 2015 Did not qualify
Flag of Egypt.svg 2019
Flag of Morocco.svg 2023 Champions5410125
Total2/4107121810

UNAF U-23 Tournament

UNAF U-23 Tournament record
Appearances: 3 / 4
YearRoundPositionPldWDLGFGA
Flag of Libya (1977-2011).svg 2006 --------
Flag of Tunisia.svg 2007 Third place3rd
Flag of Morocco.svg 2010 Runners-up2nd320163
Flag of Morocco.svg 2011 Third place3rd201112
Flag of Algeria.svg 2015 Postponed

Islamic Solidarity Games

Islamic Solidarity Games record
YearRoundPositionPldWDLGFGA
Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg 2005 Silver medal icon.svg Silver Medal2nd522142
Flag of Iran.svg 2010 Cancelled
Flag of Indonesia.svg 2013 Gold medal icon.svg Gold Medal1st430163
Flag of Azerbaijan.svg 2017 Group stage5th312021
Flag of Turkey.svg 2021 Group stage5th311154
Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg 2025 To be determined
Total1 title4/4157531710

Honours

Intercontinental

Bronze medal icon.svg Bronze medal (1): 2024

Continental

Gold medal icon.svgWinners (1): 2023
Silver medal icon.svg Runners-up (1): 2011

Other

Silver medal icon.svg Runners-up (1): 2010
Bronze medal icon.svg Third Place (2): 2007, 2011
Silver medal icon.svg Runners-up (1): 2005
Silver medal icon.svg Runners-up (1): 2015

See also

Notes

  1. Monaco is a Monégasque club playing in the French football league system.
  2. The club listed is the club for which the player last played a competitive match prior to the call-up.

References

  1. "Paris 2024". Archived from the original on 2024-07-29. Retrieved 2025-07-14.
  2. Kasraoui, Safaa. "Moroccan Football Returns to Olympic Games After 12 Years of Absence". Morocco World News. p. 1.
  3. "Olympic Football Finals - Athens 2004". www.goalzz.com. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
  4. "Morocco to host Olympic tourney". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
  5. "Morocco, Egypt chase Olympic spot". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
  6. "Morocco through to Olympic Games". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
  7. "Gabon win first continental title". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
  8. Latrech, Oumaima (7 July 2022). "Morocco to Host U23 AFCON Tournament in 2023". Morocco World News . Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  9. "CAF unveils the host country of the AFCON U-23 2023". AfrikPage. 8 July 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  10. "Hosts Morocco get Ghana, Congo and Guinea at TotalEnergies U23 AFCON draw". CAF. 5 May 2023.
  11. "Moroccan U-23 team beats Guinean counterpart 2-1". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. 2023-06-24. Retrieved 2023-06-28.
  12. Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "TotalEnergies U23 AFCON: Morocco secure semi-final berth with impressive win over Ghana | Total U-23 Africa Cup of Nations 2023". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2023-06-28.
  13. "Morocco dominates Ghana with 5-1 victory, advances to U23 Africa Cup of Nations Semi-Finals". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. 2023-06-27. Retrieved 2023-06-28.
  14. "CAN U23: Morocco join Egypt in the final and qualify for the Olympic Games". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. 2023-07-05. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
  15. Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "Morocco triumphs over Mali to reach final, seal Olympics berth | Total U-23 Africa Cup of Nations 2023". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
  16. "Morocco's U23 team crowned with African Cup of Nations". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. 2023-07-08. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
  17. Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "Morocco win maiden TotalEnergies U-23 Africa Cup of Nations title with victory over Egypt | Total U-23 Africa Cup of Nations 2023". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
  18. "King Mohammed VI congratulates national U23 team for their victory, qualification to Paris '24 Olympics". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. 2023-07-09. Retrieved 2023-07-12.
  19. Kasraoui, Safaa. "U-23 AFCON: King Mohammed VI Congratulates Atlas Lions". moroccoworldnews. Retrieved 2023-07-12.
  20. "Tarik Sektioui appointed Morocco's new U23 manager". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. 2024-03-01. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  21. "Olympics football: Crowd trouble sees Morocco's win over Argentina delayed before play resumes". BBC Sport. 2024-07-24. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
  22. MASAITI, Amira EL (2024-07-27). "Morocco loses to Ukraine 2-1 in second Olympics football match". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
  23. MASAITI, Amira EL (2024-07-30). "Morocco beats Iraq 3-0 in last Olympics group stage game, qualifying for quarterfinals". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
  24. Dure, Beau (2024-08-02). "Morocco 4-0 USA: Paris Olympics men's soccer quarter-finals – as it happened". the Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2024-08-02.
  25. MASAITI, Amira EL (2024-08-05). "Morocco's Olympic dream ends with 2-1 defeat to Spain". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  26. MASAITI, Amira EL (2024-08-08). "Morocco's Olympian football team win historic bronze with 6-0 Egypt sweep". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  27. "السيد طارق السكتيوي يكشف عن قائمة اللاعبين المتوجه إلى باريس" [Mr. Tariq Al-Saktiwi reveals the list of players heading to Paris] (in Arabic). Royal Moroccan Football Federation. 4 July 2024.
  28. "JO Paris 2024/Maroc U23 : Ayman El Wafi annonce son forfait" (in French). Hespress. 9 July 2024.