Washington, 6 June — before the match, the ambassadors already agreed on the result: both countries win. One week before Morocco meets Brazil at the World Cup in New York, the two countries’ ambassadors in Washington sat down together — and turned a 90-minute panel into a declaration of partnership that goes far beyond the pitch.
Seven days before Morocco and Brazil meet at the 2026 World Cup, their ambassadors in Washington chose a think tank panel to say what they really think about each other. At a nearly 90-minute discussion on the “Power of Sport in Diplomacy” organised by the Atlantic Council, Youssef Amrani and Maria Luisa Viotti made a case that the 13 June match at New York New Jersey Stadium is the visible face of a relationship that runs considerably deeper.
“After nearly fifty years in diplomacy, I have realized that football can open doors and build connections in 90 minutes that diplomacy sometimes takes years to establish”, Amrani said. “Sport connects instantly. It transcends borders, languages, cultures and politics”. He described Morocco and Brazil as nations “united” by a shared passion for football — and as partners whose economies are complementary enough to support a significant expansion of their bilateral relationship.
“May the best team win. But whatever the score, Morocco and Brazil are already winning together through friendship, cooperation and a shared vision of the future”. — Youssef Amrani, Ambassador of Morocco to the United States · Atlantic Council, Washington, 5 June 2026
Amrani also used the occasion to frame Morocco’s trajectory: from the historic 2022 World Cup semifinal in Qatar, to the U-20 World Cup title in Chile in 2025, to the 2030 co-hosting alongside Spain and Portugal, Morocco’s sporting rise is, in his reading, inseparable from a broader strategic vision shaped by King Mohammed VI — “making Morocco a bridge between Africa, Europe, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean”. He noted that the 2026 World Cup coincides with the 250th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Morocco and the United States.
He was equally direct about the economic dimension. Morocco is currently Brazil’s second-largest trading partner on the African continent, while Brazil remains a major partner for Morocco in agriculture, food security, fertilisers and industry. “The Atlantic relationship is no longer limited to North America and Europe”, he said. “The South Atlantic is increasingly becoming a strategic space for cooperation and growth”.
Brazil’s ambassador: Morocco is ‘one of the best national teams in the world’
Maria Luisa Viotti was equally warm — and equally precise. She praised the Atlas Lions’ historic 2022 performance and said Morocco now embodies “a new energy in world football”. She described the Moroccan national team as “one of the best national teams in the world”, recognised for “their tactical intelligence, disciplined play and effectiveness on the counterattack”. On 13 June, she said, the encounter promises a top-level show — and she expressed confidence that the 2030 World Cup will be “a great success” for Morocco, Spain and Portugal.