Home advantage and a new generation fuel Morocco’s bid for a first WAFCON crown

Morocco’s women are one victory away from a third successive Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final, but after two defeats in the showpiece match, the Atlas Lionesses know only one outcome will now satisfy their growing ambitions: a first continental title.

The 2026 WAFCON, being staged in Morocco from 26 July to 16 August, is the third edition of the competition to be hosted by the country in four years. Morocco have already reached the semi-finals after beating South Africa 2-1 in the quarter-finals – a rematch of the 2022 final – and that result also secured qualification for the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil.

Sixteen teams began the tournament, divided into four groups, with the four semi-finalists earning direct qualification for the World Cup.

Morocco’s rise has been rapid. The national team played its first international match on 19 March 1998, losing 3-0 to South Africa in Rabat. At that time, women’s football in Morocco was largely an administrative afterthought, as federations across North Africa focused primarily on the men’s game.

That changed in 2020, when the Federation Royale Marocaine de Football (FRMF) launched a major structural programme. It created a professional women’s league, invested an estimated $65m annually, expanded youth academies and established a clearer route from grassroots football to the elite level.

The Mohammed VI Football Complex in Rabat, already regarded as Africa’s most advanced training centre, became the operational hub of the project.

The results were visible almost immediately. In 2022, as hosts, Morocco reached the WAFCON final for the first time. In front of 50,000 supporters at Stade Prince Moulay Abdellah, the Atlas Lionesses lost 2-1 to South Africa, with Hildah Magaia scoring for the winners.

A year later, Morocco made their debut at the Women’s World Cup and progressed to the last 16. Nouhaila Benzina became the first player to wear a hijab at a FIFA tournament, an achievement with both sporting and political significance.

At the 2024 WAFCON, played in July 2025, Morocco reached a second consecutive final on home soil. Nigeria, 10-time champions, came from behind to win 3-2 in an extraordinary contest at Stade Olympique de Rabat. Captain Ghizlane Chebbak scored her fifth goal of the tournament, but the trophy again escaped Morocco.

The team now sit 64th in the FIFA women’s world rankings, with 1,402 points, two places lower than in the previous list. They are fourth among African nations behind Nigeria, ranked 36th, South Africa in 58th and Ghana in 60th.

That position does not fully capture Morocco’s current level. They are the only African side to have appeared in the last two WAFCON finals. Their ranking has also been affected by playing fewer friendly matches than some of their rivals.

Vilda’s tactical blueprint

Spain’s Jorge Vilda, who managed the Spanish women’s national team until 2023, has given Morocco a clearly identifiable style based on controlled possession, quick transitions and the use of width from advanced full-backs.

The team generally begin in a 4-2-3-1, which can become a 4-3-3 when they have the ball. Chebbak operates as a roaming number 10, often leaving her nominal position to receive in the inside channels. Elodie Nakkach and Yasmin M’Rabet frequently form the defensive-midfield partnership, responsible for circulation and the first line of pressure.

Morocco had 46% possession in their 2025 final defeat by Nigeria, although that figure can be misleading. Against opponents of comparable continental quality – Senegal, Algeria and Kenya in the 2026 group stage – their share has regularly exceeded 60%.

The issue is not simply retaining possession. It is doing so against the Super Falcons, who can compensate for being outnumbered in midfield with an aggressive and disruptive high press.

Exact public PPDA figures are not available for the whole tournament, but match observations suggest Morocco average about 10-12 passes per defensive action in the group stage, falling to seven or eight in the knockout rounds. Vilda’s preference is for a compact mid-block before triggering pressure in specific situations during opponents’ build-up.

The side’s most dangerous weapon is their attacking transition. Right-winger Sakina Ouzraoui is particularly effective at carrying the ball forward, often collecting possession deep before advancing rapidly. Her goal against South Africa in the 31st minute of the 2026 quarter-final was a textbook example: recovery, pass, run behind the defence and finish, all executed in three passes and four seconds.

Set-pieces remain the main structural concern. Three of the five goals Morocco conceded across the 2022 and 2025 finals came from dead-ball situations or second balls. The problem is collective concentration in aerial duels inside the penalty area rather than an individual weakness.

Chebbak leads a changing team

Born in Casablanca on 22 February 1990, Ghizlane Chebbak is the daughter of Larbi Chebbak, a Morocco international during the 1970s. She developed her technique playing with boys in the streets of Casablanca before entering the women’s senior game at 13. She was called up to the national team at 17.

Chebbak is now the most decorated player in Moroccan women’s football. She was named the best player at the 2022 WAFCON, finished as top scorer at the 2025 tournament with five goals, and became the first Moroccan to win the African Women’s Player of the Year award in 2025.

She was also selected in the 2025 FIFPRO Best XI, becoming the first Moroccan and only the second African player in history to make that team.

Her game is built around the classic number 10’s qualities: exceptional peripheral vision, elite final-ball delivery and the ability to slow the match at precisely the moment others are rushing. Exact goals-and-assists figures for Morocco are not publicly available, but observations from the past two WAFCON tournaments suggest she averages 0.7 goals or assists per match.

At 36, the 2026 WAFCON could be Chebbak’s final major tournament. Every appearance carries the weight of a football lesson, as well as the responsibility of guiding Morocco into a new era.

Ouzraoui represents that next generation. A right winger with pace and the ability to dribble in tight spaces, her quarter-final goal completed Morocco’s route to the semi-finals and confirmed their place at the 2027 World Cup.

The team also possess a pure centre-forward who has featured at each of the last two WAFCON tournaments. Her runs behind the defence, short movements to lose markers and first-post finishing provide the depth Chebbak’s passes require. She is the natural attacking complement to a system in which creativity comes from midfield and the wings.

At centre-back, a young, athletic defender has impressed with her reading of the game against world-class forwards including Asisat Oshoala and Thembi Kgatlana. Her aerial ability is particularly valuable for a side seeking to improve its record at set-pieces and represents the future of Morocco’s defence.

Benzina remains an important figure at full-back. Beyond becoming the first player to wear a hijab at a Women’s World Cup in 2023, she is dependable in one-on-one situations and offers an attacking outlet on the flank. Her presence contributed to FIFA adapting its regulations on head coverings.

Another emerging option is a young left-footed player developed at La Masia in Barcelona, who received her first senior Morocco call-up for the 2026 WAFCON. She has not yet enjoyed the game time of the older members of the squad, but her composure under pressure and vision make her a potential future cornerstone. Vilda has introduced her gradually.

A title has become the measure

Morocco’s position is both promising and demanding. Three home WAFCON tournaments, two final defeats and a third opportunity in progress have created a double pressure.

Home advantage provides world-class facilities, public support and familiar logistics. Yet each failure also adds to the emotional burden surrounding the team.

The immediate target is another final and World Cup qualification, which has already been achieved through the semi-final place. The true objective, however, is the trophy.

The longer-term challenge is replacing Chebbak. Her eventual retirement or gradual withdrawal will leave a creative gap that no current player can fill immediately. Vilda’s staff will need to accelerate the transition by giving M’Rabet and Nakkach greater responsibility as creative midfielders while integrating players such as Azraf to broaden Morocco’s attacking sources.

Nigeria remain the continental benchmark, with 10 WAFCON titles. Morocco lost 3-2 to them in the 2025 final, and the difference is no longer structural but psychological. Nigeria know how to win these matches. Morocco must learn to do the same, and only a title is likely to close that gap.

The FRMF’s annual investment of $65m is substantial by African women’s football standards. Without a major trophy, the return will remain largely symbolic. WAFCON success could attract larger sponsorship deals, increase coverage of the domestic league – currently dominated by ASFAR, who won their 13th title in 2025-26 – and make Morocco more appealing to players from the diaspora in Europe.

There is also a coaching issue. Four of the 16 teams at the 2026 WAFCON are led by women, representing 25%. Morocco have instead chosen a senior male coach from Spain, a pragmatic decision given Vilda’s World Cup success with Spain in 2023. The FRMF must nevertheless invest in developing Moroccan women coaches.

Lamia Boumehdi, former Morocco Under-20 coach and winner of the 2024 CAF Women’s Champions League with TP Mazembe, is presented as the model. The federation’s task is to create a pipeline capable of producing more Moroccan coaches at continental level.

The Atlas Lionesses are no longer a surprise package. They are a developing continental power with elite infrastructure, unprecedented federal backing and a generation led by Chebbak that has changed perceptions of women’s football in North Africa and beyond.

But the absence of a major title is now the statistic that matters most. Two final defeats have provided lessons; a third would be much harder to explain away.

The recommended course is stability rather than revolution: keep Vilda, his staff and the core squad together until 2027, while improving defensive work on set-pieces. The FRMF should also identify two creative successors to Chebbak by 2028, including one from the domestic league; fund UEFA A and UEFA Pro training for five Moroccan women coaches by 2028, with placements at European clubs; and increase television coverage, marketing and broadcasting rights for the domestic competition.

Rabat is being watched across the continent. Morocco are one win from creating history. To turn an ambitious project into a dynasty, they still need the prize that has so far eluded them.