TheAtlasLions.com - News and information about a Moroccan football (soccer) team
Title
The Atlas Lions
Description
Africa had to wait 36 years after Egypt first represented the continent at the finals of the FIFA World Cupâ„¢ for the appearance of another African team. By 1970 the African zone had been guaranteed a place at the finals and at the end of the qualifying campaign, Morocco was the team that had earned the right to play at the finals.
On route to Mexico though, the Atlas Lions had to overcome some stiff opposition: In the first round they needed a play-off to eliminate Senegal, following a 1-0 first leg victory and a 2-1 return leg defeat. In the next round, not even a play-off could separate them from Tunisia and three draws a flip of the coin had to decide which team would go to the final round. It fell Morocco's way and after winning a three-team group that included Nigeria and Sudan, Morocco became the first African country to qualify from an exclusively African qualifying campaign.
Although they went out at the first hurdle at Mexico '70, they did manage to become the first African country to earn a point at the finals after holding Bulgaria to a 1-1 draw. They obviously took a liking to Mexico, as 16 years later, they were back at Mexico '86. They held Poland and England to a draw then and beat Portugal before going out in the second round against the eventual runners-up, Germany.
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- Alexa: TheAtlasLions.com
