Overview:
The Morocco football federation has a constant presence in academies in France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain. Players such as Achraf Hakimi, Hakim Ziyech and Noussair Mazraoui are examples of how scouting and early integration have been key.
In 2022, Morocco reached the semifinal of the FIFA World Cup.
With this feat, the world started paying keen attention. It was no coincidence: more than half of that staff had been born or trained in Europe, and each one carried with them the identity of a country that learned to look beyond its borders.
The sporting feat with that fourth place reflected a state strategy: to integrate the diaspora and strengthen the national team with players who combine European technique and Moroccan heart.
The formula is not improvised or recent.
For more than a decade, the Royal Moroccan Football Federation has been building a model that articulates international scouting, contact with families and training projects so that diaspora talents feel part of the national project.
It is a mixture of pragmatism and cultural pride that today bears tangible fruits.
A global network to attract European talent with Moroccan roots
The federation has a constant presence in academies in France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain.
Players such as Achraf Hakimi, Hakim Ziyech and Noussair Mazraoui are examples of how scouting and early integration have been key.
The approach does not seek to “steal” talent: the contacts with families and coaches seek to transmit belonging, identity and opportunity, according to former coach Walid Regragui, also a product of the diaspora since he was born in France.
Regragui was the driver for the last four years, but he left the position less than 100 days before the 2026 World Cup and was replaced by former U-20 coach, Mohamed Ouahbi.
The idea of the Moroccan Federation is that the project does not suffer the change of coach. “What matters is not the people, but the institutional work,” said Fouzi Lekjaa, the president of the FRMF. A good way to exemplify the structural idea is that the squad for Qatar 2022 had 14 players born outside Morocco, more than half. That will not change beyond the departure of Regragui.
First-class infrastructure: the Mohammed VI Academy as the heart of the project
The strategy is not limited to attracting talent. The country invests in elite infrastructure, such as the Mohammed VI Academy, to offer world-class training to local players and ensure that the national base remains competitive alongside youngsters from Europe.
This duality ensures that Morocco does not depend solely on the diaspora, but can integrate the values of its local football into a professional and modern scheme.
Results that validate the policy: from the absolute World Cup to the U-20
Morocco not only reached the semi-final at Qatar 2022, but also shines in youth tournaments and consolidates a generation that ensures sustained competitiveness.
As happened in the last U-20 World Cup played in Chile in 2025, where the team of that category was crowned champion after defeating Argentina in the final under the command of the new coach of the major.
Precisely in that tournament, Othmane Maamma, a French-born player who is even compared to Cristiano Ronaldo, stood out.
International recognition confirms that the strategy has positioned the country as an emerging African power and a benchmark in global talent management.
Morocco: identity, debate and future projection
The model also generates discussion. For some, it is pragmatism; for others, a state policy that strengthens cultural and sporting identity.
The key, analysts agree, is to balance local talent and diaspora, ensuring that the strategy is sustainable and respects historical roots.
Meanwhile, Morocco continues to consolidate a path that not only aims at immediate results, but also to project itself as a global power in football over the next decade.
Credit: ESPN Peru