Michael Kariati
Morocco’s Atlas Lions have raised belief that the World Cup could come to Africa for the first time in history after reaching the semi-finals of the 2022 competition with a 1-0 win over Portugal.
The North Africans have become the first African country in history to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup since its inauguration in 1930.
Coincidentally, in 1986, the Atlas Lions also became the first African team to reach the Round of 16 of the same World Cup.
Some of the African nations that reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup are Cameroon in 1990, Senegal (2002) and Ghana (2010).
Morocco will now meet defending champions, France, on Wednesday in a make-or-break match in their dream of winning the biggest prize in world football.
To reach this stage, France beat England 2-1. The other semi-final pits favorites Argentina against 2018 finalists, Croatia.
So far, the Atlas Lions of Morocco have been very impressive with wins over Belgium, Spain and Portugal, raising hope that the World Cup could come to Africa for the first time.
Other African representatives - Cameroon, Ghana and Tunisia - were knocked out in the first round while Senegal were eliminated in Round of 16 by England, who are also going home after they were defeated by England.