Yassine Bounou Has Faced 9 World Cup Penalties. He’s Only Allowed 2 Goals.

Morocco’s Yassine Bounou is doing something at this World Cup that no goalkeeper has ever done before. And it’s not just the saves he’s making in open play — though those are impressive too. It’s the penalties.

Bounou faced a spot kick from Kylian Mbappé in the quarterfinal against France, just before the cooling break, and he stopped it. That save pushed his World Cup penalty record to a place that sounds like a typo.

According to Opta, Bounou has faced nine penalties at the World Cup in his career. He’s saved four. Three have gone off target. And only two have actually gone in. That’s a 77.8 percent success rate at stopping goals from the spot.

A penalty record that doesn’t make sense

For context: most goalkeepers are happy to save 25 percent of penalties over a career. Bounou is operating on an entirely different level. He’s now the goalkeeper with the most penalty saves in World Cup history — and he’s not done yet.

What makes it even wilder is that these aren’t weak penalties. Mbappé is one of the best in the world from the spot. But Bounou read it, got a hand on it, and kept Morocco alive in a game where France was pouring on pressure.

The guy is driving France’s attackers crazy. He’s been excellent on crosses, quick off his line, and his shot-stopping has been elite. But the penalty numbers are the kind of stat that makes you double-check the math. Four saves, three off-target attempts, two goals. That’s not normal.

Why this matters for Morocco

Morocco is already playing with house money at this tournament, but Bounou’s form gives them a chance against anyone. If a game goes to penalties, they’ve got a guy who turns shootouts into an unfair fight. Teams will start trying to avoid extra time against Morocco. That’s the kind of reputation a goalie can build in one tournament.

And yeah, Bounou’s overall World Cup run has been special. He’s the reason Morocco hung around against France as long as they did. But it’s the penalty record that will follow him long after this tournament ends. Nine penalties faced. Two goals allowed. That’s not a stat line. That’s a legacy.