Morocco opens 35th Africa Cup of Nations with 2-0 win over Comoros to delight of fans and royalty

RABAT, Morocco (AP) — A spectacular bicycle kick earned royal approval for Ayoub El Kaabi as host Morocco opened the 35th Africa Cup of Nations with a 2-0 win over Comoros on Sunday.

Home fans including Moroccan Crown Prince Moulay Hassan, who greeted the players before kickoff, had endured a frustrating game as island nation Comoros, ranked 108th in the world, stubbornly held out against one of the tournament favorites.

Comoros goalkeeper Yannick Pandor even saved an early penalty from Soufiane Rahimi.

Brahim Díaz finally broke the deadlock in the 55th minute, setting off relieved celebrations around the stadium, before El Kaabi sealed the win with an overhead kick in the 74th.

The prince, watching from his royal box, was unable to conceal his delight as he applauded.

Morocco’s quest to become a soccer superpower is a family affair. It was a passion for the prince’s grandfather, Hassan II, and the current king, Mohammed VI, who oversaw one of the most aggressive buildouts in African sporting history to achieve his aim. The Kingdom is set to be a main co-host of the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal.

Mohammed VI's portrait was beside Gianni Infantino as the FIFA president proclaimed in French before kickoff, “This will be the best ever Africa Cup of Nations!”

The only blemish from a Moroccan point of view was an early injury to team captain Romain Saïss, who wiped away tears as he left the field.

“He felt something behind his knee but we don’t know if it is muscular or something else,” Morocco coach Walid Regragui said. “We hope it’s not too serious and that we can get him back later.”

Morocco’s regular captain, Achraf Hakimi, remained among the substitutes after recovering from an ankle injury.

"We are being very careful with him,” Regragui said.

Hakimi was well enough to show his African Footballer of the Year trophy to fans before kickoff.

Excitement had been building for hours Sunday and wintry showers failed to dampen the mood. Beninese artist Angélique Kidjo, Moroccan singer Jaylann and French-Moroccan rapper Lartiste performed the tournament’s official song for the first time during a spectacular light show for the opening ceremony.

But the highlight for the Moroccan fans – judging by the sea of smartphones to capture the moment – was the appearance just before kickoff of the king's eldest son beside Infantino and Patrice Motsepe, the president of the Confederation of African Football. Prince Moulay Hassan shook hands with the Comoros players and then posed for a photo with the Morocco team, seemingly unperturbed by heavy rainfall.

Morocco is backed by many to lift what would be just its second Africa Cup title 50 years after the first in 1976. The final is Jan. 18 next year.

Morocco is the highest-ranked African team at No. 11. The Atlas Lions, as the team is known, became the first from Africa to reach the World Cup semifinals in 2022.

Morocco still relied on goalkeeper Yassine “Bono” Bounou to deny Comoros' Rafiki Saïd a prompt equalizer after Díaz's opener.

“I am very proud of my players,” Comoros coach Stefano Cusin said of his team's battling performance. “We have a lot of youngsters. I think we gave a good image of Comoros.”

The opening match was played in Rabat’s renovated almost 70,000-capacity Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, one of nine venues across six cities that were constructed or renovated for the tournament.

The tournament mascot is a lion named Assad, inspired by the barbary lions that once prowled the mountains of north Africa. The last known photograph of a wild lion in Morocco was taken by French army photographer Marcelin Flandrin from a flight over the Atlas Mountains in 1925.

Egypt begins its bid for a record-extending eighth title – and Mohamed Salah’s first – against Zimbabwe in Agadir on Monday. Defending champion Ivory Coast begins its title defense against Mozambique in Marrakech on Wednesday. Senegal and five-time champion Cameroon are also among the favorites, while Algeria was the only country apart from Morocco to have all its matches sold out already.

The future of the biennial tournament took a twist Saturday with the announcement it will move to a four-year cycle to bring it in line with the FIFA calendar.

“The AFCON every four years will be an event nobody wants to miss,” Regragui said. “What I want is to see African football grow.”

AP at the Africa Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-cup-of-nations

Morocco's Ayoub El Kaabi celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Morocco's Brahim Abdelkader Díaz celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Morocco's Ayoub El Kaabi celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

A Morocco fan waits for the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Performers take part in the opening ceremony of the Africa Cup of Nations and the opening group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

A Moroccan fan cheers before the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Moulay Hassan, Crown Prince of Morocco, waves while FIFA President Gianni Infantino applauds before the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Performers take part in the opening ceremony of the Africa Cup of Nations and the opening group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People dressed as mascots take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks recovered most of their earlier losses as volatility returned to Wall Street after two days of solid gains.

The S&P 500 fell 0.1% after slumping as much as 1.5% in early trading Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 87 points, or 0.2% as of 11:08 a.m. Eastern. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.1%. Stocks in Europe pared their losses.

Oil prices remained elevated although down from earlier highs. The price for a barrel of U.S. crude rose close to $114 a barrel at one point.

The unsettled trading follows a national address late Wednesday from President Donald Trump, where he vowed the U.S. will continue to attack Iran and failed to offer a clear timetable for ending the conflict in the Middle East. Those comments appeared to dim the hopes for a near-term conclusion to the war that had pushed stocks higher through most the week.

Major indexes are still on track to close out the week with gains. Thursday is the last day of trading on Wall Street this week with with the stock market closed on Good Friday.

Crude oil prices have been the main force behind the sharp swings for stocks globally. Shipping traffic has been severely curtailed in the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world’s traded oil passes through during peacetime.

The price of Brent crude, the international standard, jumped 4.8% to $105.99. per barrel. Benchmark U.S. crude rose 8.4% to $108.82 per barrel, pulling back after breaching $110. Prices had been sliding back toward $100 per barrel prior to Trump’s address on Wednesday. The U.S. only relies on the Persian Gulf for a fraction of the oil it imports, but oil is a commodity and prices are set in a global market. A disruption anywhere affects prices everywhere.

Markets have been broadly sliding since the war began, with indexes often rising and falling sharply along with statements from Trump about the direction of the war. Just on Monday, the S&P 500 briefly neared a 10% drop from its record, a steep-enough fall that professional investors have a name for it: a “correction. The index gained ground Tuesday and Wednesday on hope that the war could end soon.

Airlines and other travel-related companies were among the biggest losers on Thursday. United Airlines fell 3.3% and Carnival shed 3.6%. Energy companies gained ground, with Chevron rising 1.6%.

Treasury yields remained relatively steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to to 4.30% from 4.32%.

Wall Street is worried that higher energy prices are adding to already stubbornly high inflation. Rising fuel prices take a bigger chunk out of consumers' wallets in several ways. Directly, gasoline prices in the U.S. have surged more than 33 percent from a month ago to average $4.08 per gallon, according to the auto club AAA.

Indirectly, rising fuel prices tend to make a wide range of services and goods more expensive. Flights become more expensive as airlines raise ticket prices to offset rising fuel costs. Consumer goods become more expensive as shipping and transportation costs rise.

Inflation has been stubbornly above the Federal Reserve's 2% target. The war and its corresponding surge in energy prices effectively pushes inflation higher and that has dashed hopes for the Fed to cut interest rates. Wall Street had hoped for the central bank to cut rates in order to help offset a weakening job market. Lower interest rates could help stimulate the economy by lowering borrowing costs, but they also risk worsening inflation.

Traders came into 2026 forecasting several cuts to the Fed's benchmark interest rate, which influences rates for mortgages and other loans. They are now expecting the benchmark rate to remain steady this year.

Associated Press journalists Chan Ho-Him and Matt Ott contributed to this report.

Fishing boats dot the sea as cargo ships, in the background, sail through the Arabian Gulf toward the Strait of Hormuz off the United Arab Emirates, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP Photo)

Perople walk in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, April 2, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

President Donald Trump speaks about the Iran war from the Cross Hall of the White House on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Washington. (Doug Mills/The New York Times via AP Pool)

Persons walk in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, April 2, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)