DR ‹ › Having secured a place in the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco is on the verge of a historic rise in the FIFA rankings, reaching a level the Mountakhab has never achieved before. Whether the Atlas Lions will go on to lift a second continental title, 50 years after their first, remains to be seen. What is already certain, however, is that Morocco national football team, under the leadership of Walid Regragui, continues to shatter milestones on the global stage. The official FIFA rankings will be updated on January 19, the day after the AFCON final. Yet projections from the specialized platform Football Meets Data already offer a clear picture of Morocco's upward trajectory. Following Friday night's 2–0 quarter-final victory over Cameroon, the national team gained 11.42 additional points, bringing their total to 1,733 points. This tally would propel Morocco to eighth place worldwide, virtually ahead of traditional heavyweights such as Belgium and Germany. This surge reflects a sustained period of sporting excellence. Morocco comes off a historic World Cup semi-final appearance and is now guaranteed at least a place in the last four of the Africa Cup of Nations. It is also worth noting that knockout-stage defeats do not result in points being deducted from losing teams. As a result, Morocco is assured of maintaining, at minimum, this eighth position until the end of the tournament. With further victories, the teammates of Achraf Hakimi could even edge closer to the world's top five, with Brazil, currently ranked fifth, holding a lead of only around 20 points.
