RABAT — Tens of thousands of Moroccans thronged the capital on Tuesday to welcome home their national football team, the first Arab and African squad ever to reach the semi-final of a World Cup.

The team and their coach Walid Regragui waved from an open-topped bus as they were driven from the airport and around central Rabat, accompanied by dozens of police cars and motorbikes with flashing lights and wailing sirens.

The crowd cheered and some waved flares as fireworks crackled in the sky over the seaside capital.

Many supporters, clad in the team's kits and waving red flags, had waited hours to see their heroes.

The team was to be hosted by King Mohammed VI later on Tuesday evening. — Agencies