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The 2026 World Cup will be the third of Reda Tagnaouti's career. After Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022, he has once again been selected alongside Yassine Bounou and Munir El Kajoui. Few Moroccan goalkeepers can match that longevity.
Born in 1996, Tagnaouti discovered football through his father, himself a goalkeeper and goalkeeping coach. «Sometimes I would go along to training with him, which made me want to follow in his footsteps», he once recalled.
Those footsteps led him to the Mohammed VI Football Academy, where he spent six years honing his skills before joining Renaissance Berkane at the age of 18.
His early years laid the foundations for what would become one of the most decorated careers among Morocco's current goalkeepers. At Wydad Casablanca, Tagnaouti won multiple Botola titles and reached three CAF Champions League finals, lifting Africa's most prestigious club trophy in 2022. His performances earned him recognition as both Botola Pro Best Goalkeeper and CAF Champions League Best Goalkeeper.
On the international stage, he first tasted success with Morocco's victorious 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN) squad before earning a place in the Atlas Lions' squad for the 2018 World Cup. He later featured in the squads for the 2019 and 2021 Africa Cup of Nations before being selected for Qatar 2022.
Although Bounou became the face of Morocco's historic run to the World Cup semi-finals, Tagnaouti witnessed from inside the dressing room the achievement that transformed African football.
Looking back on Qatar, he believes the team's greatest strength was its unity. According to the goalkeeper, a strong sense of cohesion developed from the moment the squad arrived in Qatar, creating an exceptional atmosphere free of tensions despite the pressure of the tournament.
He has also stressed that even players who rarely featured remained fully committed, ready to step in whenever needed and driven by a spirit of sacrifice that reflected the collective mentality of the group.
That spirit, he says, remains intact today.
From Injury to a Third World Cup
Yet between Qatar and the 2026 World Cup, Tagnaouti faced one of the toughest challenges of his career. In March 2023, while still at Wydad, he underwent knee surgery after suffering a serious injury that sidelined him for an extended period.
The goalkeeper who had conquered Africa suddenly found himself forced to start over.
The road back was neither quick nor easy. He rebuilt his confidence and fitness through spells at Maghreb de Fès and Moghreb Tétouan before earning a fresh opportunity with AS FAR in the summer of 2025.
The move proved transformative. Since arriving in Rabat, Tagnaouti has become one of the pillars of an AS FAR side determined to restore the military club to continental prominence. In his first season, the team reached the CAF Champions League final for the first time in 40 years.
His performances earned him another World Cup call-up and confirmed one of Moroccan football's most remarkable comebacks.
As the Atlas Lions look to build on the legacy of Qatar, Tagnaouti believes the formula remains unchanged. The collective spirit that carried Morocco to the semi-finals in 2022 is still alive, and the ambition remains the same: to match that historic achievement or perhaps go even further.
And if called upon, Tagnaouti stands ready, as he has throughout a career defined by perseverance, patience and an unwavering commitment to the team.
