Opinion: Morocco lost, but it made World Cup history. Here’s why.

Despite losing to France in the final four, history was made by Morocco at the 2022 men’s football World Cup in Qatar. They became the first African and first Arab team to advance to a semi-final at the tournament.

The Atlas Lions, endowed with impeccable organization and defensive will, creative midfield passing, speedy offense and the rousing racket of its fans, broke the elusive World Cup glass ceiling against Portugal to face France.

The sound of the Moroccan fans was a lifeblood coursing through the first World Cup to be staged in the Arab world. As magical as Morocco’s progress seemed, one should not ignore the fact that no team had scored against them (save for an own goal while defeating Canada) – until France did. The team stamped its authority with unimaginable flair and controlled composure.

There are six notable forces that drove their success.

1. Team spirit

Morocco demonstrated the ultimate collective team spirit to eliminate higher ranked teams that boasted a generous supply of star individual talents – Belgium, Spain, Portugal. What Morocco lacked in stardom was compensated by sheer desire to win and technical application by the whole team.

Their quarter-final goal against Portugal, coming after repeated defensive pressure, was scored in the 42nd minute. Some good touches led to Yahya Attiat Allah fielding the ball, controlling it and then sending a cross into the box. There, Youssef En-Nesyri seemed to rise forever above the outstretched hands of the tall Portuguese defenders, to head it in from the center. The fluid passing was beautiful to watch, leaving Portugal bewildered and eliciting pandemonium in the stadium that rippled around the world.

2. Driven by history

Motivated by a desire to go past the quarter-final, Morocco had to learn from history. The last three African sides to reach World Cup quarter-finals – Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002 and Ghana in 2010 – had gone out in the most painful manner, in overtime. In each of these cases, the African teams lacked the composure to see through their leads.

The Atlas Lions defended with all of their hearts and then scored, preventing any possibility of overtime. Even injuries – and striker Walid Cheddira being sent off after a second yellow card – did not destabilize the defensive rhythm of the team. Portugal, including star player Cristiano Ronaldo, could not find the equalizer. From the beginning, the Moroccans looked determined that history would be made.

3. Defenses win championships

Until the semi-finals, Morocco had remained unbeaten. In the round of 16, they eliminated Spain on penalty kicks, where their goalkeeper Yassine Bounou made huge saves to propel them to the quarter-finals. The elimination of Portugal, just like Spain, came on the back of a solid defense that had conceded no goals.

It is often said that defenses win championships. If that’s the case then Morocco had the qualifications to win it all. Their ball possession had been 22 percent against Spain and 23 percent against Portugal, which speaks to their defensive discipline and efficient execution at scoring. The low possession percentages also show that having plenty of ball possession is not a guarantee for victory. However, taking leads also allows the team to narrow spaces, forcing the opposition to run more – and then be hit on the counter attack.

4. Fans are the 12th player

Morocco found itself in the unique position of carrying the dual hopes of the Arab region as well as the African continent. The quarter-final felt like a home game for Morocco, with the team’s supporters dominating in the stands. The Moroccan fans cheered the team, jeered Portuguese players and relentlessly willed on their heroes.

Fans acted as the 12th player for Morocco, the people’s favorite team in Qatar.

5. Star performers

Despite the pressure of bearing the burden of history, the Atlas Lions demonstrated that they had the technical and tactical capacity to cope. Indeed, the team was steady, organized, serene, defensively sound, creative in midfield and smart and efficient in attack. Bounou, Achraf Hakimi, Azzedine Ounahi, Romain Saiss, Sofyan Amrabat, En-Nesyri and Hakim Ziyech were Morocco’s stand out performers.

Historically, Morocco has been a trailblazer at the World Cup for Africa and was not fazed by Spain and Portugal.

6. Local coaching

Morocco’s Cinderella story at the 2022 World Cup had a lot to do with coach Walid Regragui, who installed an effective defend-and-counter style that none of their opponents – until France – came close to solving.

Regragui ingeniously set up and steered the team to the semi-finals and, in the process, changed the false narrative that local African coaches are not equal to the task of masterminding team success at this level. Indeed Regragui’s side showed that an African coach can creatively harness both the skills and the wills of the players to achieve national glory.

Eyes on the trophy

The 2022 World Cup has been characterized by unexpected upsets and exceptional entertainment for fans. One of the goals of world football body FIFA is to continue growing the game.

Morocco’s qualification for a semi-final spot was a breakthrough in demonstrating that parity is emerging. There was a big portion of the world’s population that would have erupted with joy and tears if team Morocco had their name engraved on the trophy. Morocco showed that it’s possible for an African team to win the World Cup in the near future.

Wycliffe W. Njororai Simiyu is a professor of Health and Kinesiology at the University of Texas at Tyler. This piece originally appeared in The Conversation.