World Cup 2026: 3 Moroccans among the most capped African players in history

09.07.26 FT World Cup

France

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Morocco

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By reaching the quarter-finals of the World Cup against France, Yassine Bono has become the third most capped African player in the tournament's history. He trails only two of his compatriots: Achraf Hakimi and Azzedine Ounahi.

The Moroccans are making their mark. Achraf Hakimi, Azzedine Ounahi, and Yassine Bono played their 16th, 13th, and 12th matches in the history of the competition, respectively, against France. No other player from the continent has done better.

In fact, before this edition, currently taking place in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, the record was jointly held by François Omam-Biyik (Cameroon) and Asamoah Gyan (Ghana) with 11 appearances each.

The Paris Saint-Germain full-back and captain of the Atlas Lions played six matches against Brazil (1-1), Scotland (1-0), Haiti (4-2), Netherlands (1-1, 3-2 on penalties), Canada (3-0), and France (0-2) to claim the record for himself.

Yassine Bono and Azzedine Ounahi also played all six of Morocco's matches in the tournament, earning their spots on the podium and confirming Morocco's impressive stats, as the team with the most appearances among African nations (29 matches), ahead of Cameroon (26), Nigeria (21), and Tunisia (21).

Top most capped African players in World Cup history:

1- Achraf Hakimi (Morocco): 16 matches

2- Azzedine Ounahi (Morocco): 13

3- Yassine Bono (Morocco): 12

4- François Omam-Biyik (Cameroon): 11

5- Asamoah Gyan (Ghana): 11

6- Ismaila Sarr (Senegal): 11

Imed Ben Amara |

Editorar, fr

Imed Ben Amara - bilingual sports writer and web editor with experience in football content creation. Since 2021, he has contributed to Foot Africa, providing news coverage and analysis.

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