Moroccan fans in Coral Gables celebrate 1-1 World Cup opening draw vs. Brazil

FIFA World Cup admin June 14, 2026 0 Comments

Moroccan fans in Coral Gables celebrate 1-1 World Cup opening draw vs. Brazil

For a few hours Saturday night, a second-floor ballroom at THesis Hotel in Coral Gables felt like a World Cup watch party in Casablanca, as a few hundred Moroccan fans of all ages cheered, danced and banged on Darbouka drums as their beloved Atlas Lions tied Brazil 1-1 in their opening game.

The red-clad fans, many of them wearing the No. 2 jersey of team captain and Paris Saint-Germain star Achraf Hakimi, erupted when Ismael Saibari gave Morocco a 1-0 lead in the 21^st minute. They groaned 11 minutes later when Brazilian Real Madrid standout Vinicius Junior scored the equalizer.

When the final whistle blew, the Moroccan fans jumped out of their seats, grabbed their flags and celebrated as if they had won. Several men in traditional djellaba robes and balgha slippers banged on drums and led the joyous chants to extend the party, which was hosted by the Moroccan American Council Association of South Florida.

At one point, they broke into “U-S-A! U-S-A!”

South Florida is home to 10,000 Moroccans, and they are deeply loyal to their national team, which rose to global prominence after reaching the semifinals of the 2022 World Cup, becoming the first African nation to do so in World Cup history. Morocco is ranked No. 7 in the world in the latest FIFA rankings, one spot behind Brazil.

“I’m very excited about this World Cup because it’s here in the United States, and we live here and have a big community here, and after 2022, everything changed for us,” said Rachid El Hanani, who has lived in Miami for seven years attended the party with his family. “Now, we are thinking about the final. Our expectations are very high.”

The Moroccan American Council fosters cultural traditions and community spirit, and the South Florida chapter formed after Morocco opened a consulate in Miami two years ago, one of just two in the United States, along with New York City.

“We are trying to bring our community together with events like this,” said Faouzi Chbani, a local soccer coach. “We are learning from the Latino communities, how they bring everyone together. We are trying to implement our values, as Moroccans, to transfer them to the next generation.

“It is important for us that our kids grow up, certainly not 100% Moroccan, but we try to expose them to our traditions, mainly the traditions that are not religious, just the cultural part like music, sports and holidays.”

El Hanini agreed that passing on Moroccan pride to the younger generation was the most satisfying part of the World Cup watch party.

“It’s very special for me to gather with other Moroccans for our holidays and events like the World Cup,” he said. “We want our kids to know each other and be able to practice our native language of Arabic, which is not easy. We also want to share our culture with the local people, too, so they can see our traditions.”

The Moroccan World Cup team has been a unifier within the diaspora.

The Atlas Lions first qualified for the World Cup in 1970 and reached the knockout stage for the first time in 1986. They did not advance past the group stage again until their historic 2022 run.

The current Morocco team has a few key players injured, but a strong roster led by Hakimi and Real Madrid forward Brahim Diaz, who was the top scorer in the African Nations Cup.

El Hanini and Chbani both said they are “optimistic, but realistic” about Morocco’s chances. In addition to Brazil, their group includes Scotland and Haiti. After the opening games, Scotland leads the group with three points from its 1-0 win over Haiti, while Morocco and Brazil are tied with a point apiece.

“It’s very competitive, with big teams like Brazil, but I think we can do well,” Chbani said. “We have to stay optimistic and at least get to the same point as last time.”