Morocco’s World Cup Success Sparks Surge in Applications to Elite Football Academy

"After the successful participation of the Moroccan national team, we are inundated with applications. [...] The players and staff are very proud to see former graduates contributing to the team’s achievements," Tarik El Khazri of the Mohammed VI Academy (AMF), who coached Youssef En-Nesyri, the only scorer against Portugal (1-0), qualifying Morocco for the World Cup semi-finals, told Reuters. 11 of the 26 Atlas Lions who will play the World Cup third-place match came from the AMF pitches. Among them are Nayef Aguerd, Azzedine Ounahi, and Youssef En-Nesyri.

Inaugurated in 2009, the AMF was born out of King Mohammed VI’s desire to get Moroccan football out of the rut. A well-thought-out initiative, as this national training center has become, over the years, a quality pool at the service of Moroccan football, but also of European clubs. "The talent has always existed in Morocco, but adequate training of talents at a younger age was lacking," explained El Khazri, adding that the AMF has players from all corners of the kingdom and from different social groups. "Talent is the main criterion," the official assured.