July 19 (Reuters Sports Service) - The Jordanian Football Association announced on Sunday that it has appointed Moroccan Badou Zaki as the national team's coach for one year to lead the team in the 2027 Asian Cup finals, following the termination of the contract with his compatriot Jamal Sellami after the team's journey in the World Cup ended.

Jordan exited the World Cup in the first round after three defeats against Austria, Algeria and defending champions Argentina, leading to Salami's departure from his post at the beginning of July.

The Jordanian Football Association stated on its website, "The Board of Directors of the Jordanian Football Association, headed by Prince Ali bin Al-Hussein, decided to appoint Moroccan coach Badou Zaki as coach of the first national team, to lead the Nashama in the upcoming competitions, most notably the Asian Cup finals to be held in Saudi Arabia at the beginning of 2027."

The statement added, "The announcement of the signing of Moroccan coach Badou Zaki, on a one-year contract, comes after the board of directors, during its meeting, agreed to accept the resignation of national team coach Jamal Sellami and his assistant coaching staff, while expressing thanks and appreciation to them for their efforts during the past period."

"The new coach of the Jordanian national team will be introduced along with the announcement of the coaching staff, in accordance with Zaki's recommendation."

The Jordanian Football Association did not disclose the financial details of the 67-year-old coach's contract.

During his time as a goalkeeper, Zaki led Morocco to the top of a group that included England, Portugal and Poland in the 1986 World Cup, making Morocco the first Arab and African team to qualify for the second round in the history of the World Cup.

Zaki won the Ballon d'Or as the best player in Africa from France Football magazine in the same year.

He led the Moroccan national team as a coach for the first time from 2002 to 2005, taking the team to the final of the 2004 African Cup of Nations in Tunisia, where they lost to the home team.

Zaki took over coaching Morocco for the second time from 2014 to 2016 before Frenchman Hervé Renard took over.

He also previously coached the Sudanese national team in 2023 and the Niger national team from 2023 to 2026.