Why is Morocco goalkeeper called Bono? Yassine Bounou's nickname explained

Yassine Bounou sprung to global prominence after his heroics in Morocco's penalty shootout victory against Spain in the 2022 World Cup last 16, as he saved attempts from Carlos Soler and Sergio Busquets.

The goalkeeper, who is affectionately known as 'Bono', continued those heroics against Portugal in the quarter-final of the tournament and denied Cristiano Ronaldo deep into injury time to ensure that his nation became the first African country to appear in a World Cup semi-final.

A success at club level too, he has shone for Girona and Sevilla in La Liga, with his performance levels ensuring he won the Zamora Trophy in 2021-22.

The question is, why has he got 'Bono' printed on the back of his shirt instead of 'Bounou'? Does it have something got to do with U2 frontman Bono or not? GOAL brings you everything you need to know.

Why is Yassine Bounou called Bono?

While there have been plenty of puns relating Morocco's Bono to the front man of rock band U2, the inspiration behind the nickname is chiefly phonetic.

The goalkeeper's second name, Bounou, is pronounced in a similar way to 'Bono' and hence the birth of a new nickname for the goalkeeper, who has evidently embraced the moniker, happily sporting it on the back of his jerseys.

It is not clear if the Moroccan Bono is a fan of U2 or if he has any musical talents, but that has not prevented various media outlets from making U2-related puns when reporting on the Atlas Lions goalkeeper.

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Who is Bono from U2 & what does the name mean?

Paul Hewson is the actual name of Bono, who is the lead singer of the Irish rock band U2.

The nickname was given to him by Irish artist Guggi. In Latin, the word 'bono' refers to something good or virtuous and it is reported that the nickname was originally meant to refer to Hewson's voice.

Hewson adopted it as his stage name and came to be known as Bono from the age of 14.

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Pride (In the name of love), which was written about Martin Luther King Jr., became an instant hit and was the first U2 song to break into the US top 40 charts.

Since then U2 have delivered numerous hits including "Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking for", "Sunday, Bloody Sunday", With or Without You" and "Beautiful Day".

As of 2022, they had released 14 studio albums and sold over 150-170 million copies worldwide. They have the distinction of winning the most Grammy awards as a band (22) and feature in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In November 2022, Bono released a memoir named Surrender: 40 songs, One Story, which encompasses his journey as a musician and also sheds light on his relationship with his wife Ali Hewson, to whom he has been married since 1982.