Moroccan football legend Hassan Akesbi, a former national team star and historic goal-scorer in France’s Ligue 1, died Saturday at the age of 89, after a long illness, according to the Mohammed VI Foundation for Sports Champions.
Born on May 1, 1935, in Tangier, Akesbi started his football career in 1950 with Sevillana Tangier, later moving to FUS Rabat.
He later joined French club Nîmes Olympique, where he scored 119 goals in 204 matches, a record that made him the club’s all-time top scorer. Akesbi also led the former players’ association at FUS Rabat.
In France’s top league, Akesbi shined at Stade de Reims, finishing as the second-highest scorer in the 1961-62 season with 23 goals and ranking third the following year with 24 goals.
In 1963, he moved to AS Monaco, then returned to Reims for another season. He finished his professional playing career at FUS Rabat, where he competed from 1965 to 1970 before transitioning into coaching for Moroccan clubs, including Hassania Agadir and Ittihad Zemmouri Khemisset.
With 173 goals in 293 Ligue 1 matches, Akesbi remains one of the league’s top scorers, ranking 11th on its all-time list. In Moroccan football, he won major titles, including the 1962 Mohammed V Cup and the 1967 Throne Cup, and represented Morocco from 1960 to 1970.