Allal Ben Kassou dropped out of school at a young age because his father, a soldier, was forced to move the family constantly. Allal later joined the army and entered a school for music, taking up the saxophone, and soon began playing football as a goalkeeper after his classes. He was spotted by the coach for FAR Rabat and was recruited to their reserve squad in 1959. He was promoted to the starting squad in 1962, an affiliation that he would hold until his career ended in the 1970s. Along the way he picked up seven top division titles (1961-1964, 1967, 1968, and 1970) and the Coupe du Trône twice (1959 and 1971). He made his international debut for Morocco at the 1963 Mediterranean Games, where his country lost the bronze medal match against Spain. The following year he participated in the 1964 Summer Olympics, where he played in his nation’s losses against Hungary and Yugoslavia. He was set to compete at the 1968 Games, until Morocco withdrew due to Israel’s participation, and was also a reserve at the 1972 edition, but did not appear in any matches. His other major international tournaments include the 1967 and 1971 Mediterranean Games and the 1970 World Cup, where Morocco failed to win a game and were eliminated in the group stage. He retired from active competition after a match against Algeria in 1974, having earned a total of 116 caps. A year later he began working as a coach with FAR Rabat and eventually served in that role for Maghreb Tetouani in 1984 and Ittihad Khemisset from 1985. He returned to FAR Rabat in 1995.
Morocco