The King of Morocco praises the "Atlas Lions" in the Qatar World Cup

Morocco's King Mohammed VI, in two telephone conversations he made with national team captain Ghanem Sayess and coach Walid Regragui, praised his country's "outstanding achievements" for the football team. Morocco is the first Arab and African team to qualify for the semi-finals since the tournament began in 1930.

King Mohammed VI of Morocco praised the "distinguished achievements" of his country's football team, and congratulated French President Emmanuel Macron on his country's qualification to the final match of the World Cup in Qatar.

The praise for the Moroccan national team came during two phone calls that the King made on Wednesday evening, with the captain of the national team, Ghanem Sayess, and his coach, Walid Rekragui, according to the official Moroccan News Agency, Thursday.

In the World Cup semi-finals on Wednesday evening, France defeated Morocco with two goals free of charge, so Morocco will face Croatia on Saturday in the third and fourth place match, while France will play Argentina in the final on Sunday.

During the two phone calls, King Mohammed VI wished the national team "full success in the upcoming meetings."

Praising Regragui, the king said that "only a few months after he assumed leadership of the national team, he was able to form a team of players with cohesion and fighting spirit, which enabled him to record a distinguished presence in this event."

Morocco is the first Arab and African team to qualify for the semi-finals since the most prominent tournament in the world of football was launched in 1930.

It is also the third team from outside Europe and South America to qualify for the Golden Square after the United States in 1930 and South Korea in 2002.​​​​​​​​

According to the agency, King Mohammed VI also made a phone call to French President Emmanuel Macron, in which he congratulated him on his country's qualification for the World Cup final.