Spain and Morocco are literal neighbours. Their football is enmeshed – six Spain-born players will turn out for Morocco at the 2026 World Cup. Spain is the only European country whose autonomous regions sit on the African continent – the Spanish enclaves of Melilla and Cueta being Morocco’s land neighbours. The narrow Strait of Gibraltar in the Mediterranean is anyway less than a 15-km boat-ride away, but if one stood atop Mount Tidghin, the tallest peak of northern Morocco’s Rif range, in Al Hoceima city, one might see Spain on the horizon on a clear day. Like a beautiful vista beckoning from not too far, the Spanish dream has seen many Moroccans cross over, with second generations playing football in the Spanish system. For those like Brahim Diaz, Morocco’s lynchpin at the 2026 World Cup, it was a nudge from history and a push from geography that saw the influential Malaga-born forward returning to play for Morocco in 2023. When Morocco broke Spain’s 15-match unbeaten streak record in 2025, Brahim had been their top scorer, …