Morocco Wins, Then Waits, and Then Starts Celebrating

It had been greater than an hour since Anissa Lahmari had scored the aim that put Morocco in entrance, the one which was poised to ship one other historic win for her workforce at its first Women’s World Cup.

But it was not over but. And so Morocco’s gamers needed to wait.

They huddled collectively round a workers member’s cellphone as Germany bombed balls upfield, because it tried to string passes via a stingy South Korea protection and because it lofted hopeful ones over it. A Germany aim, any aim, would save its World Cup and sprint Morocco’s inconceivable dream of advancing to the knockout rounds. The minutes ticked on, and on, after which abruptly, it was over.

Morocco had crushed Colombia, 1-0. Germany had not crushed South Korea, 1-1. And after all of the minutes, and all of the ready, that was all it took: Morocco, a workforce in its first World Cup, a workforce that had by no means gained a recreation within the match every week in the past however now has gained two in a row, was via. And it didn’t appear to know what to do.

When the referee’s whistle blew within the Germany recreation, Morocco’s gamers broke their huddle and ran. They ran seeking hugs. They ran to search out teammates. A couple of ran simply to run.

Morocco had already gained, in fact. The first North African workforce to qualify for the Women’s World Cup, and the primary to discipline a participant in a hijab, its mere presence within the match had been an achievement, and an inspiration. Yet Morocco was considering greater than mere participation.

As one in every of eight first-time entrants on this 12 months’s expanded match, it had arrived with a squad that was little identified even to most Moroccans earlier than it certified on dwelling soil final July. It had gained followers and respect in its qualification journey, however even its coach knew the subsequent step could be an enormous one.

“They showed us that they can fill stadiums and make Moroccans happy,” the workforce’s French coach, Reynald Pedros, had mentioned earlier than the match. “They did it on the African stage. Now we are hoping to do the same on the international one.”

Now that they’d, Pedros didn’t appear to know what to do. He burst into tears on the sector as his workforce and his workers celebrated their achievement. Players dropped to their knees in thanks. Others embraced. In the middle of all of it, seemingly misplaced and unsure the place to go, or who to hug subsequent, was Pedros.

Back dwelling, pleasure took over Morocco, the place solely seven months in the past followers had crammed the streets to cheer the boys’s workforce because it made a run to the World Cup semifinals. Now, the nation might quickly be cheering for its ladies’s squad.

In Casablanca on Thursday morning, individuals (principally males) had crammed cafes quietly to look at the sport. There was little hope for Morocco getting into the day, since Colombia led the group and Germany was extensively anticipated to affix it within the knockouts. But when South Korea scored early, and Morocco took the lead in opposition to Colombia simply earlier than halftime when Lahmari banged within the rebound of a missed penalty kick for the opening aim, followers began to hope.

In one cafe, the boys inside checked their telephones repeatedly, updating the rating within the Germany recreation. A couple of mentioned quiet prayers.

As a surprising victory, and an much more stunning chance — development out of the group stage within the workforce’s first World Cup — crept nearer, the stress mounted. Across the Mediterranean in France, Kenza Haloui, 34, had left work in Nice to look at the match alone whereas texting along with her cousins in Morocco. She had grown up in Fez and performed soccer her complete life earlier than transferring to Europe. When Morocco lastly gained, she mentioned, “I felt so many emotions.”

At the ultimate whistle, although, the celebrations had been muted: briefs shouts of pleasure, some honking of automobile horns. And then individuals transfer on with their day.

Soumia Idba, 39, watched the sport on the workplace in Casablanca, however couldn’t assist however discover how tough it had been to view it. “It was very hard to find a way to watch a game,” Idba mentioned. “It wasn’t like in Qatar. Most Moroccans watch online.”

If the celebrations had been subdued, although, the workforce’s subsequent recreation might stoke extra feelings: By advancing, Morocco earned a date with France within the spherical of 16 on Tuesday. It is identical matchup that, in December on the males’s World Cup, introduced followers into the streets of Casablanca and Marrakesh and dozens of cities throughout North Africa and Europe. France gained that day, ending the dream of Morocco’s males’s workforce.

The nation now has a second probability. Its ladies’s workforce has one thing nobody anticipated: its first.