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Join on Telegram Doha – Morocco advanced to the quarter-finals of the Kings World Cup Nations after defeating Japan 4-2 in a high-scoring last-chance match at the KL Arena on Monday evening.
The North African side, led by popular streamer Ilyas Elmaliki, who commands over 2.5 million followers and holds the second most-watched Kick channel worldwide, showed remarkable improvement following their tournament journey
Morocco’s run began with a 4-1 loss to Colombia before securing a decisive 9-2 victory against Ukraine.
The match started intensely with Morocco’s Issam Erraki opening the scoring in the third minute. Mehdi Amri extended the lead in the 16th minute before Japan reduced the deficit through Kensuke Enjo in the 20th minute.
Morocco immediately responded as Nadir Louah restored their two-goal advantage in the 20th minute.
Fuad El Amrani further extended the lead in the 24th minute. Japan’s Junichi Kato converted a penalty in the 38th minute, but it wasn’t enough to prevent Morocco’s 4-2 victory.
The statistics reflected Morocco’s dominance, with 17 total shots compared to Japan’s 11, and 9 shots on target versus Japan’s 4. While Japan held 56% of possession with a 92% successful pass rate, Morocco’s clinical finishing proved decisive.
The Kings World Cup Nations, taking place from January 1 to January 12 in Italy, represents an innovative seven-a-side football format.
The tournament, founded by former Barcelona defender Gerard Piqué and streamer Ibai Llanos, features unique rules including two 20-minute halves, special “secret weapons” that teams can deploy, and tie-breaking penalty shootouts taken from the center of the field.
Morocco will now proceed to the quarter-finals, scheduled for January 8-9, as they continue their pursuit of the championship in this 16-nation tournament. The competition will conclude with the final at Juventus Stadium in Turin.
The match drew significant viewership, continuing the trend of high audience engagement that has characterized Elmaliki’s previous streaming events, which typically attract over 400,000 live viewers.
