Mohammed VI Football Academy hailed as model for African football development

The presence of four players from the Mohammed VI Football Academy within the national team competing in the U17 Africa Cup of Nations, hosted on Moroccan soil, stands as a measurable, concrete, and irrefutable reflection of the excellence of this institution — the result of a Royal Vision aimed at footballing excellence long before these young talents reached the professional stage.

I. The Mohammed VI Football Academy: Cornerstone of a Royal Project

The Mohammed VI Football Academy was inaugurated in 2009 by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist Him, as part of a national initiative aimed at promoting and modernizing football infrastructure in the Kingdom. Following the observation that Moroccan professional football lacked momentum and international influence, His Majesty proposed the creation of a training center that would serve as a national benchmark, aligned with the governance standards of the world’s leading football clubs, both legally, educationally, administratively, financially, and infrastructurally;

His Majesty the King honored the project with His High Solicitude and decided to grant it annual financial support from His personal funds, demonstrating the Sovereign’s personal commitment;

The Mohammed VI Football Academy, born from the Royal Vision, has established itself as a continental center of expertise, combining world-class infrastructure with innovative methodology, according to the very words of the Confederation of African Football, which publicly recognized the uniqueness and superiority of the Moroccan training model.

II. A Training Model Marked by Royal Foresight

The Mohammed VI Football Academy is founded on a core principle envisioned by His Majesty: shaping the individual before shaping the footballer. Through a sports-study curriculum, this institution, which meets international standards, enables its beneficiaries to combine academic education with advanced football training in order to succeed in professional careers and later evolve within the best clubs in Morocco and abroad;

The Mohammed VI Football Academy, a genuine hub of sporting excellence, perfectly embodies the Kingdom’s strategy in football development, encompassing talent scouting and detection across the different regions of Morocco, the enhancement of young players’ potential, and the strengthening of national technical expertise;

This integrated educational architecture, supported by first-class infrastructure, makes the Mohammed VI Football Academy a sovereign instrument serving a national ambition.

III. Four Young Lions from the Academy in the Squad

Among the twenty-six players selected by the national staff to defend the Kingdom’s colors in this U17 AFCON, four are currently pursuing their training at the Mohammed VI Football Academy: Ibn Salah Oualid, Boughazir Adam, Harouch Mohamed, and Ezzarky Ayman;

Youssef En-Nesyri, Nayef Aguerd, and Azzedine Ounahi at the 2022 World Cup, as well as Oussama Targhaline, Alaa Bellaarouch, and Akram Nakach — champions of the 2023 U23 AFCON — alongside Chouaib Bellaarouch, champion of the 2025 U17 AFCON, and Houssam Essadak, Yassir Zabiri, Othmane Kountoune, Yassine Khalifi, and Fouad Zahouani — U20 World Champions in 2025 — embody the excellence of the Academy’s training system, which has successfully developed their talent, strengthened collective spirit to achieve shared objectives, and expanded the nation’s footballing honors. Ibn Salah Oualid, Boughazir Adam, Harouch Mohamed, and Ezzarky Ayman now become part of this illustrious legacy.

IV. AFCON U17 in Morocco: The Fulfillment of a Vision

The fact that the U17 Africa Cup of Nations is taking place on Moroccan soil, partly within the Mohammed VI Football Complex — an emblematic site of the Royal sports policy — gives this edition symbolic and institutional significance;

The Confederation of African Football regularly praises the Academy for combining modern infrastructure, high-level supervision, and a comprehensive educational vision, contributing to the emergence of talents capable of shining on both continental and international stages;

This hallmark is the one that His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist Him, sought to imprint upon Moroccan football as early as 2008. Today, it can be seen in the performances of every Academy graduate, in every title won, and in every footballing journey. It is also reflected in the eyes of these four young Lions trained at the Academy, who, as they step onto the pitches of the U17 AFCON, carry the glorious weight of the Royal Vision.

V. An Unbroken Thread: From the 2008 Foundations to the 2026 U17 AFCON

The story told by this U17 AFCON began with the Royal Letter of Skhirat in 2008, continued with the inauguration of the Mohammed VI Football Academy in 2009, was strengthened by Morocco’s historic semi-final run at the 2022 World Cup, illuminated by the U20 world title in Chile in 2025, and now finds a new expression through these four young talents emerging from the Academy;

These efforts undeniably aim to make sport a national priority and reflect the Sovereign’s unwavering commitment to granting this sector a prominent place in the Kingdom’s development dynamic, as well as a leading role in the lives of citizens and in the service of the nation.