Morocco coach Regragui quits post as World Cup looms

2026-03-05 - 22:03

Walid Regragui took Morocco to the World Cup semi-final in Qatar in 2022 and was also at the helm in January when Morocco lost in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations. (AFP pic) RABAT: Morocco coach Walid Regragui quit his job on Thursday, only months ahead of the World Cup finals and ending weeks of speculation around his future. Regragui took Morocco to the World Cup semi-final in Qatar in 2022 and was also at the helm in January when Morocco lost in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations but has quit citing exhaustion. Mohamed Ouahbi will take over as coach, reports said. He was in charge when Morocco won the U-20 World Cup in Chile last year. The 50-year-old Regragui had been the target of supporter criticism despite a stellar record of 36 wins in 49 matches with eight draws and only five losses since taking over in September 2022. During that time Morocco recorded the best achievement by an African country at the World Cup and set a new world record for the most successive wins by a national team – a total of 19 between June 2024 and last December. According to multiple reports, Regragui had wanted to quit after Morocco lost a controversial Nations Cup final to Senegal in January in a tournament they hosted and where they were hoping to end 50 years without success in the continental championship. He said he was worn out after almost four years in