Morocco Cheered for Historic World Cup Success Despite Loss to Croatia

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Jason Lemon is a Senior Politics Editor at Newsweek based in Brooklyn, New York. Prior to taking on the editor role, Jason's reporting focused on U.S. politics and international affairs. He joined Newsweek in 2018, and had previously worked as an editor at a Middle Eastern media startup called StepFeed. He also worked a year as a contributor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and has bylines in The Christian Science Monitor, The Palm Beach Post, Al Fanar Media and A Magazine. He is a graduate of the American University of Beirut in Lebanon and Andrews University in Michigan. You can get in touch with Jason by emailing j.lemon@newsweek.com. Languages: English, Spanish, French and Levantine Arabic

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Morocco's historic success at the World Cup came to an end on Saturday, as the North African team lost to Croatia—finishing fourth in the international soccer tournament taking place in Qatar.

The final score was 2 to 1, with Croatia scoring the first goal of the match. Later, Morocco's Achraf Dari gave his team's fans renewed hope, scoring an impressive header to tie the match.

Ultimately, however, Croatia scored again and won the game, meaning they will finish the World Cup in third place behind Argentina and France. Those two teams will compete on Sunday to determine who is ranked first and second.

While Morocco's Atlas Lions failed to secure a third place finish, the team still made history as the first African and Arab team to ever go so far in the international tournament. They even beat analyst predictions in a series of upset victories, propelling them into the tournament's semi-finals.

Morocco team at World Cup
Morocco's players react after the Qatar 2022 World Cup third-place football match with Croatia at Khalifa International Stadium in Doha on Saturday. Croatia beat Morocco 2 to 1, meaning the North Africa team finished fourth... KARIM JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images

While fans were disappointed, they also highlighted the success of the Atlas Lions.

"Thank you, Morocco. They dared to dream and they absolutely delivered. The best ever finish by an African nation in the #FIFAWorldCup," the Confederation of African Football (CAF) tweeted in a Saturday post after the team's loss.

"Didn't win the world cup, but won our hearts. Thank you #Morocco!" London's Mayor Sadiq Khan posted on Twitter.

"Thank you, Morocco! See you in 2026," CNN international correspondent Larry Madowo wrote in a tweet.

"Morocco has represented Africa well in this tournament. A great team with great spirit that mas made other FA's on the continent, I hope inspired," journalist Mimi Fawaz tweeted. "So much to build on from this team as we build up to 2024 Afcon."

"Congratulations Morocco for finishing fourth; highest position achieved by an Afrikan nation in the history of #FIFAWorldCup. 2026 will be even better for Afrika," African sports journalist Eric Nijru wrote.

Morocco's historic run in the World Cup drew praise and excitement across the world, as well as in the North African country. Photos and videos from Morocco showed massive crowds cheering and celebrating as they defeated Portugal last week.

That victory propelled them into the semi-finals, making history for their continent, their country and Arabic-speaking nations. They then went on to lose to France on Wednesday.

Even President Joe Biden and other U.S. lawmakers shared their praise for Morocco after their historic success.

"It was a great honor to watch today's World Cup match alongside Prime Minister Akhannouch of Morocco," Biden tweeted after the team lost to France, sharing a photo of him watching the game. "No matter who you're rooting for, it was remarkable to watch how much this team has been able to achieve."

After Morocco defeated Portugal, Representative Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, cheered the team's success.

"Congratulations Morocco," the progressive congresswoman tweeted last week. "What a brilliant joyful game."

Newsweek contacted the Royal Moroccan Football Federation for comment.

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About the writer

Jason Lemon is a Senior Politics Editor at Newsweek based in Brooklyn, New York. Prior to taking on the editor role, Jason's reporting focused on U.S. politics and international affairs. He joined Newsweek in 2018, and had previously worked as an editor at a Middle Eastern media startup called StepFeed. He also worked a year as a contributor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and has bylines in The Christian Science Monitor, The Palm Beach Post, Al Fanar Media and A Magazine. He is a graduate of the American University of Beirut in Lebanon and Andrews University in Michigan. You can get in touch with Jason by emailing j.lemon@newsweek.com. Languages: English, Spanish, French and Levantine Arabic

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Jason Lemon is a Senior Politics Editor at Newsweek based in Brooklyn, New York. Prior to taking on the editor role, Jason's reporting focused ... Read more