This article is part of the Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network , a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 48 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from three countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 11 June.

The plan

Four years after reaching the semi-finals of a World Cup for the first time, Morocco set sail for North America with ambitions high and a squad with even better pedigree than at Qatar 2022.

Sometimes history does repeat itself and Morocco will hope that happens this time. Just as in 2022, the head coach was recently sacked.…