Morocco beat Jordan 3-2 and a goal from inside their own half by Oussama Tannane set the tone for a spectacular final.
Oussama Tannane's wonder goal from inside his own half put Morocco on the path to their second FIFA Arab Cup title with a 3-2 victory after extra time in the final against Jordan at the event hosted in Qatar.
On Thursday, a sell-out crowd at Doha's Lusail Stadium was quickly brought to its feet in the fourth minute when Qatari footballer Tannane fired a shot from well above the halfway line (estimated at 59 metres) to catch goalkeeper Yazeed Abulaila.
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Jordan's goalkeeper desperately returned to his line in an attempt to stop the shot and collided with the post, causing a four-minute long stoppage before he was allowed to continue and play resumed.
It was just the beginning of a turbulent final in which Jordan regained the lead and the match went to extra time, with the heartbroken Jordanians seconds away from clinching their first FIFA Arab Cup title in normal time.
Jordan, who were beaten finalists in the 2025 AFC Asian Cup, leveled the night three minutes into the second half when Ali Oliwan pulled away from his marker to head in from close range after a well-worked corner.
Jordan then took the lead for the first time after Mahmoud Almardi's shot hit Achraf El Mahdioui's raised hand inside the area, allowing Oliwan to convert his second from the penalty spot in the 68th minute.
The drama was far from over, however, as second-half substitute Abderrazak Hamdallah equalized in the 88th minute, touching the goal line after a corner play.
It was Oliwan, however, who had the chance for glory on virtually the last kick of regulation time when, with a clean pass towards goal, he failed to beat the goalkeeper to seal the final for Jordan with what would also have been his hat-trick.
While many may not have taken their seats for Tannane's first goal, the same may have happened at the start of extra time when Mohannad Abutaha volleyed a spectacular left-footed shot into the top right corner from the left edge of the area. Like Tannane's, it was a goal worthy of winning any final, but the VAR annulled the goal due to a controversial handball when the Jordanian controlled the ball before unleashing the shot.
The worst came later when Hamdallah scored his second half (and winning goal) after Marwane Saadane's overhead kick from a set piece was kindly put in his path from close range.
Morocco already lifted the Arab Cup in 2012, defeating Libya in the final held in Saudi Arabia. The Atlas Lions succeed Algeria, who defeated their North African neighbor Tunisia in the final four years ago.
Earlier, Morocco dominated the first half and Tannane, who plays for Umm Salal in the Qatar League, had a glorious chance to double the lead on the stroke of half-time when Abulaila whipped a cross his way, but the striker failed to make a clean connection with his left foot and Issam Smeir slid in to clear the line.
The Jordanian goalkeeper had to be on his feet throughout the first half and made his best save in the 17th minute when Karim El Berkaoui, after exchanging a one-two with Tannane, crossed the goal from the edge of the area, but Abulaila was on point, low to his right, to deflect the shot.
Morocco, the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi-final when it achieved the feat at Qatar 2022, will now turn its attention to hosting the 2025 African Cup of Nations, where the team will be further boosted by several of its European stars who had to prioritize club over country during the Arab Cup.
The FIFA Arab Cup sold more than one million tickets for the 2025 event, doubling what was sold in the previous competition four years ago.
