Moroccan-origin player Qatar World Cup 2026 squad

He will not play for Morocco, but his name can catch the attention of Moroccan supporters. Karim Boudiaf, 35, is part of the group selected by Qatar for the 2026 World Cup. An experienced defensive midfielder at Al-Duhail, he belongs to the core of the Qatari national team, which is still relying on several key players already present at the 2022 World Cup.

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His career path is unique. Born in Rueil-Malmaison, in the Paris region, Karim Boudiaf grew up in France in a Maghrebi family. His mother is Moroccan, his father Algerian. Trained in France, he played for Lorient and Nancy before heading to Qatar at a very young age, where his career truly took off.

Arriving at Al-Duhail in 2010, the former French-trained player established himself in the Qatari championship. Capable of playing as a defensive midfielder or central defender, he built a reputation as a robust, disciplined player and valuable in a team’s balance. This consistency opened the doors of the Qatar national team for him.

Karim Boudiaf has represented Qatar since 2013. He participated in the 2022 World Cup, hosted in Qatar, where he played all three matches of his team. Four years later, he is still there, in a squad that wants to show a different face after its home failure.

For Qatar, his presence brings experience to a group dominated by players from the local championship. For Moroccans, it also recalls these particular trajectories of footballers from the diaspora, who passed through France, linked to the Maghreb by their origins, but engaged sportively under another jersey.

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At 35, Karim Boudiaf could experience one of the last major international tournaments of his career. Not with the Lions of the Atlas, but with Qatar, in a World Cup where his personal story will not go unnoticed.