The Morocco Under-17 team has made history by achieving the biggest rout ever in a FIFA World Cup match of any category, 16-0, a part of the group stage for the FIFA U-17 World Cup. This is the largest victory ever for any World Cup match of any age category, men or women, passing a 13-0 from Spain to New Zealand in the U-17 World Cup 1997.
This feat was achieved thanks to New Caledonia being left with nine players after 30 minutes. In fact, the match was also notable for the use of a green card, a new system from FIFA first introduced in the World Cup U-20 last month (the one that Morocco won against Argentina). Coaches can invoke it twice in a match to challenge referee decisions, asking him to review an action using Football Video Support (FVS), a "lighter" alternative to VAR to be used in matches where VAR is not available.
Morocco used the Green Card here to have the referee review an action that resulted in the second red card. Morocco had scored three goals before that, and evenly scored eight goals between the two halves.
Sadly for them, that wasn't enough for them to mathematically qualify for the next round of the tournament, and finished third in the group behind Japan and Portugal, having lost all two previous matches. The good news is that in this competition, the eight best third-placed teams also get to qualify for round of 32, so Morocco can still make it thanks to their big goal average.
What is FIFA U-17 World Cup?
The FIFA U-17 World Cup is played by players 17 years old or younger, first held in 1985, and held every two years. Germany beat France in the most recent edition in 2023, and Nigeria is the most successful team, heaving won five editions. 2025 edition is being held in Qatar, and knockout stages will continue between this month until the finals in November 27.