Following his historic achievement at the Qatar World Cup 2022, Walid Regragui now steers the aspirations of the Moroccan national team in their 19th participation at the Africa Cup of Nations for football 2023, which kicks off this coming Saturday and runs until February 11th, 2024.
The 34th edition of the African World Cup is set to take place in Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), and 48-year-old Regragui aims to secure a second title for his country after their triumph at the 10th edition held in Ethiopia in 1976.
Morocco's "Atlas Lions" and their coach are preparing for balanced challenges in Group Six of the Africa Cup of Nations 2023, which also includes the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, and Tanzania.
Regragui took charge in August 2022 after the dismissal of Bosnian Vahid Halilhodžić, a choice initially met with significant criticism from Moroccan media and press despite his notable role in leading Wydad Casablanca to win both the local league and the CAF Champions League titles in the same year.
Many mocked Regragui's appointment, but he silenced doubters by steering Morocco to a fourth-place finish at the Qatar World Cup, becoming the first Arab and African team to achieve such a feat.
In Qatar, Regragui impressed everyone with stellar performances in the group stage against Belgium and Croatia, the 2018 World Cup runners-up, before knocking out Spain and Portugal in the knockout rounds. Morocco's adventure concluded with a loss to France, the Russian World Cup holders, in the semifinals, followed by a defeat against Croatia in the bronze medal match.
The Moroccan national team's technical director ranked third in FIFA's selections for the Best Coach of the Year award for 2022, trailing behind Argentina's Lionel Scaloni, the Qatar World Cup winner, and his runner-up Didier Deschamps, France's coach.
Regragui continued to shine throughout the past year, and his tenure with the "Atlas Lions" has encompassed 18 matches so far, achieving 10 victories, 3 draws, and 3 losses. His team scored 24 goals against 9 conceded, earning him the title of Best Coach on the continent at the annual CAF Awards ceremony.
Interestingly, Regragui began his coaching career towards the end of 2012 as an assistant on Morocco's national team staff, contributing to 14 matches under his compatriot Rashid Taoussi.
After that, the Moroccan coach took the helm at Fath Union Sport (FUS) Rabat, where he remained for five and a half seasons, winning the league title in the 2015-2016 season and the Moroccan Throne Cup in the 2013-2014 season.
Regragui also ventured abroad, leading Qatar's Al-Duhail for about nine months over the course of 2020, securing the Qatar Stars League title for the 2019-2020 season, before returning once more to coach Wydad Casablanca, leading them to local league success and the CAF Champions League title for the 2021-2022 season.
Throughout his coaching journey, he accumulated several individual awards, such as being named Best Coach in the league four times (2014, 2015, 2016, and 2022). In addition, he was honored as the Best African Coach in 2023 and awarded the Royal Throne Order of Merit in 2022 in recognition of his achievement at the Qatar World Cup.
As a player, Regragui spent most of his career with several mid-tier French clubs, such as Racing Paris, Toulouse, Ajaccio, Dijon, and Grenoble, as well as two and a half seasons with Spanish Racing Santander and a single experience in his homeland with Moghreb Tetouan.
