Morocco's jersey history is a whole fashion saga, from the bold, graphic madness of the 80s and 90s to the sleek, modern designs of today. If AFCON had a runway, the Atlas Lions would qualify twice: once for football, and once for their fearless sense of style. It's getting festive in Morocco, football festive. Days away from the kickoff of the Africa Cup of Nations, only the second time in the country's history, excitement is building everywhere. And while fans prepare for the continental tournament, one question keeps popping up: Which Morocco jersey should they wear for the first match? Their vintage France 1998 kit? Their lucky Qatar 2022 shirt? A classic 80s one to reminisce about past glory? The choices are endless. The Atlas Lions' jersey has had a long, colorful journey, shifting cuts and styles across decades, from the minimalist 60s and 70s to the bold graphic 80s and 90s, and the experimental early 2000s. So here's a dive into the evolution of the Atlas Lions jersey. Morocco 1982 away kit. / Ph. DR Since the 1960s, Morocco's national football team jersey has gone through drastic changes, each reflecting the fashion moods of its era. Yet three colors have remained unshakable: red, green, and white. Across global brands like Adidas, Lotto, Nike, and Puma (the current supplier), the Atlas Lions have worn some unforgettable designs. Buckle up as we revisit what the national team wore while defending Morocco's colors. Online archives trace the earliest Morocco jersey back to 1942, when the team wore a simple red crewneck with a green star inside a green circle. Then we jump to 1962, when Morocco adopted its first Adidas design: a plain all-red shirt with the classic Adidas shoulder stripes. This minimalist style lasted until 1967, when an all-white away kit appeared, with long sleeves and a red collar. Home kit 1978. / Ph. DR In the 1970s, Adidas stepped aside for more colorful options. The 1970 home kit featured a red V-neck with green and red stripes on the collar and sleeves. The away version was a white jersey with a bold horizontal band of red and green stripes across the chest. Then came Mexico 1970, Morocco's first-ever World Cup appearance. For this historic qualification, the team wore a plain red jersey featuring a black-and-white ball topped by the emblematic Alaouite royal crown, a symbol of the kingdom. The jersey had green trim on the V-neck and sleeves. It marked a huge milestone: Morocco became the first African nation to earn a point at a World Cup. The away kit for that tournament was a white version of the same design. White quickly became Morocco's trademark away color. The bold 80s and 90s By 1980, Adidas returned with fresh designs. The home kit was red with a green V-neck and two chest logos, the Adidas emblem and the federation's crown-and-five-circles badge, labeled «Morocco» in Arabic and French. The away kit was white with red vertical stripes and Adidas' signature shoulder stripes. In 1986, for the World Cup in Mexico, Morocco unveiled a slightly modified red design with a larger green collar. Wearing that kit, the Atlas Lions topped a group featuring Portugal, England, and Poland, thanks to two draws and a famous 3–1 win over Portugal. Morocco then became the first Arab and African team to reach the knockout stage, only losing narrowly to West Germany. The late 80s saw an explosion of creativity. For AFCON 1988, which Morocco hosted, Adidas delivered one of the boldest designs ever: a reddish-orange jersey decorated with upward and downward arrow patterns, green trim, and the classic Adidas shoulder stripes. A true retro gem. The 1990s brought the stripes back. The 1990 Adidas kit featured a red home jersey with subtle tonal vertical stripes and, as always, a white away version. But Morocco failed to qualify for the 1990 World Cup. By 1992, the designs went bolder: oversized sleeve stripes, red-and-white combinations, and no green. In 1994, Morocco switched to Lotto, the Italian sportswear brand. Lotto reintroduced simplicity: a plain red home kit and a green away shirt featuring the new FRMF logo. But for the 1994 World Cup in the United States, Lotto dared to go wild. The goalkeeper kit was the most colorful Morocco had ever worn, tribal African patterns, a giant yellow flower motif, and green-purple-yellow tones. The outfield home kit split the jersey in two: bold red patterns on one side, tonal red stripes on the other, with a large FRMF badge at the center. The away version repeated the design in green. Lotto's final Morocco design came in 1996, a year Morocco missed AFCON. These kits featured faded geometric patterns inspired by Moroccan zellige tiles, the last Lotto designs before the era ended. Early 2000s, simpler designs By the late 90s, Adidas returned for another round. The 1997 kit featured simple red and green crewnecks with matching-tonal stripes. Later that year, a bolder Adidas design followed. Then came a turning point: France 1998 and Puma. Commissioned for the World Cup, the iconic 1998 Morocco kit introduced a pronounced V-neck, a green chest band, the Puma logo at the center, and the FRMF badge on the side. The green away kit mirrored the design. For the first time ever, a third kit appeared, white with red and green details. On the pitch, Morocco beat Scotland 3–0, but a late Norway win denied qualification to the Round of 16. Still, this jersey became legendary. In the early 2000s, Puma continued briefly before Morocco switched to Nike. The 2003 Nike kit featured red-and-white variations with subtle green accents. The 2004 design kept the clean approach. In 2005, Nike experimented with Moroccan architectural motifs, a chest pattern inspired by gates or zellige mosaics. The 2006 kit remained simple, with red, white, and green jerseys featuring light V-neck color accents. Morocco returned to Puma for the 2006–2007 kit, which included three puma logos around the collar and faded green gradients. In the following years (2007–2009), Puma moved the logos around, from chest to shoulders to sleeves, in various iterations. In 2010, designs got bolder: the home kit was green with a large Moroccan star on the chest, while the away kit featured grass-like vertical stripes in green and yellow on a white shirt. The alternate away kit was plain red. In 2013, Morocco reunited with Adidas, bringing back, of course, the stripes. Kits from 2014 to 2017 tried to revive 90s nostalgia through V-necks, contrasting red-green combinations, and retro silhouettes. Adidas' final Morocco design was the 2018 World Cup kit: a red home jersey with white details and a clean white away shirt with red shoulder accents. But by 2020, Morocco had returned to Puma, just in time for the kit that became a global symbol: the Qatar 2022 World Cup shirt. The home kit featured a classic red design with a green chest band, while the away kit was all white with a single vertical stripe, the jersey Morocco proudly wore on their historic run to the semifinals. Now, as Morocco prepares for AFCON, one question remains: Which of these decades of designs is your favorite?
