Morocco’s Football Diplomacy and Soft Power Projection: Reading Morocco Through The Guardian

Abstract

This article presents evidence of the role of sports diplomacy in advancing national image, soft power, and foreign policy objectives through examining Morocco’s performance in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. This study argues that sporting events, particularly successful ones, can enhance the country’s symbolic and political capital. The article develops its own view of soft power through sport’s achievement by winning the hearts and minds of foreign audiences worldwide. This matches Morocco’s cultural diplomacy, which aims to spread the nation’s image/ reputation beyond borders, especially nowadays when there is fierce competition for public opinion through soft power instruments. This study assumes that international relations are subject to ongoing changes, and small nations can use their intangible capital to consolidate their international position.