Morocco’s Atlas Lions are roaring again and an entire nation roars with them

Our country is on the world map again thanks to 26 players and a manager who will be an inspiration for generations to come

FLOORED IN DISBELIEF: Achraf Hakimi savours the moment after Morocco’s stunning quarter-final win over Portugal secured a slice of World Cup history for the African outfit. Pic: Lars Baron/Getty Images

Back in 1984, when Saïd Aouita and Nawal El Moutawakel returned to Morocco having won gold at the Los Angeles Olympics, King Hassan II is said to have told both athletes they had put Morocco on the world map. The King, in fact, was so proud of their achievements that he recommended that all girls born in the remainder of that year be called “Nawal” in homage of the then 22-year-old 400m hurdler who became a hero for every female athlete in Morocco and in the Arab region.

I was only two years old at the time and do not remember the elation in the country and I do not have any clear memories of two years later when the football team made history by reaching the last 16 of the World Cup, the first African country to do so; just a blur of everyone being happy and cheerful in the middle of a summer night.