Cameroon’s Host-Hoodoo Ends as Morocco’s Atlas Lions Roar into AFCON Semi-Finals

Cameroon’s long-standing reputation as the nemesis of Africa Cup of Nations host nations came to an emphatic end on Friday night as Morocco’s national football team powered into the semi-finals with a commanding 2–0 victory over Cameroon’s national football team in Rabat.

Since 1984, Cameroon had beaten every AFCON host they encountered — with Egypt in 1986 the lone exception — earning a fearsome tag as the tournament’s ultimate party-poopers.

That aura dissolved inside a raucous, sold-out Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, where the Atlas Lions delivered a performance rich in authority, intensity and belief.

Goals in either half from Brahim Díaz and Ismail Saibari sealed a landmark triumph for the hosts, who had come into the quarter-final under scrutiny following an unconvincing Round of 16 win over Tanzania.

Driven on by a deafening home crowd, Morocco seized control from the opening whistle, pressing high and monopolising possession as Cameroon were pinned deep in their own half. The pressure told in the 26th minute when Díaz struck for the fifth time in the tournament, deftly guiding the ball into the net with his thigh after Ayoub El Kaabi flicked on a corner delivered by captain Achraf Hakimi.

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It was Morocco’s sixth corner inside the opening 25 minutes and underlined their relentless start. The goal also carried historic significance, as Díaz became just the second player in AFCON history — after Osei Kofi — to score in five consecutive matches at the finals.

Buoyed by the breakthrough, the Atlas Lions continued to dictate the tempo and came close to doubling their advantage before the interval when Abde Ezzalzouli released El Kaabi on a swift counter-attack, only for the striker to find the side netting from close range.

Cameroon returned after the break with greater urgency, but their renewed attacking intent was blunted by a disciplined and well-organised Moroccan defence. Their best chance fell from a set-piece, when Georges-Kevin N’Koudou met a corner with a diving header that drifted wide.

With 15 minutes remaining, Morocco struck the decisive blow. From an Ezzalzouli free-kick, Nayef Aguerd’s clever touch found Saibari unmarked at the back post, and the midfielder calmly swept a low finish into the bottom corner to send the stadium into raptures.

At 2–0, and with belief coursing through the stands, Morocco were firmly in control. Cameroon could find no response as their hopes faded, while the hosts closed out a famous night in Rabat with composure — and a victory that not only propelled them into the semi-finals but finally ended a long-standing AFCON hoodoo against the Indomitable Lions.