Marrakech– After a dramatic win against Poland to ensure knockout stage qualification, the Atlas Lionesses fell to a strong Spanish team today in the quarter final round at Pasig City, in the Philippines.
Clear favorites going into today’s match, the three-time Women’s Futsal Euro champions wasted no time getting on the scoreboard. It only took La Roja 13 seconds to score the opening goal, with Irene Cordoba concluding a team move that started from kick-off.
Another 13 seconds later, Spain went up two goals to nothing. After a costly giveaway by the Moroccan defense, Irene Cordoba, once more, finished from point-blank range, to the evident frustration of Morocco head coach Adil Sayeh on the sideline.
نهاية المباراة بفوز منتخب اسبانيا أمام منتخبنا الوطني النسوي لكرة القدم داخل القاعة
⏱️ Full-time! 🇪🇸6-1🇲🇦#DimaMaghrib pic.twitter.com/zpFWHRqpvw
— Équipe du Maroc (@EnMaroc) December 1, 2025
The Atlas Lionesses’ nightmare start did not end there. Irene Cordoba completed her hat-trick after around 90 seconds of action, in similar fashion to the two previous goals, tapping in the ball from merely a couple meters away from Morocco’s goal.
As the first half progressed, the match’s initial frenetic rhythm slowed down. Morocco goalkeeper Kawtar Bentaleb made numerous key saves, preventing her side from conceding another goal in the period.
Morocco shortened Spain’s lead during the 13th minute of the first half, with Nadia Laftah tapping in the ball after Malak Zaid Alkilani’s long-range effort was parried by the Spanish goalkeeper.
In the closing moments of the first half, the Lionesses had a chance to further reduce Spain’s lead, but Drissia Korrych’s effort went wide right.
Morocco’s kick-off troubles persisted in the second half. In the opening minute of the period, Irene Cordoba – after a clever one-two combination in the center with Irene Samper – slipped the ball through Bentaleb’s legs to score her, and Spain’s, fourth goal of the contest.
Spain dominated the second half, with Marta Lopez-Pardo and Samper adding the fifth and sixth goals for Spain, respectively.
Sayeh reacted to his team’s defeat in the post-game press conference.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t expect the match to go the way it did at the start. We knew it would be a difficult match against a difficult opponent … but that doesn’t mean we should have performed how we did, especially in the first minutes,” Sayeh said. “This shows that the Spanish team’s experience far exceeds ours.”
Nevertheless, this first World Cup experience is something the team can build on, according to Sayeh.
“I’m grateful for what has been achieved up until this quarterfinal. We need to sit and look at the things we’ve acquired from this experience, and work on what we need … to compete against national teams of this sort.”
Hajar Tahri, a Wydad AC midfielder and member of the Moroccan national team, says the Atlas Lionesses could have done more, but that this is only the beginning for the team.
“It is not okay to lose 6-1. I think we could give so much more, but I will always be proud of the girls,” Tahri said. “I think we will have a great future. It was our first participation in the world cup. We are all football players. It was our first year playing indoors … I think there will be a lot of Moroccan girls that want to play here. It’s just the start.”
Spain will face off against the winner of the Brazil – Japan quarterfinal scheduled tomorrow for a chance to play the final.
