Morocco, a ‘Burgeoning Football Superpower’ (New York Times)

 Morocco has become over the past few years “a burgeoning football superpower”, said The New York Times in a story highlighting the progress made by the Kingdom in developing its sport facilities, improving scouting and strengthening training of young talents, in addition to sporting performances, including reaching the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup.

“Morocco has made itself a central hub for the continent in football terms — a position strengthened by the announcement that FIFA will open its first permanent African headquarters in Marrakech,” said the US newspaper in an op-ed published under the title “How Morocco became a burgeoning football superpower”.

In its specialised supplement “The Athletic”, the New York Times recalled that the Kingdom became in 2022 the first African or Arab nation to reach a World Cup semi-final.

“It was widely hailed as one of the competition’s great underdog stories, capturing hearts and minds well beyond the continent, but it did not happen by accident,” it pointed out, adding that Morocco’s “newfound position was only possible because of huge investment in sports facilities.”

One of the most striking is the state-of-the-art Mohammed VI football academy, it said, adding that the facility, located just outside Rabat, covers an area of 2.5km squared and boasts a school, medical centre and four pitches.

By 2017, five other regional training centres were built in different parts of the country, the daily said, adding that the Grand Stade Hassan II, which is being constructed with a planned capacity of 115,000, “will be the largest football ground in the world and a symbol of the country’s new-found status as one of the world game’s emerging powers.”

Many in the country hope the stadium will stage the 2030 World Cup’s final, the U.S. publication said, adding that before that World Cup, Morocco is also scheduled to host the next five editions of the Under-17 Women’s World Cup, annually from 2025, and, in April, capital city Rabat is expected to host the next World Football Summit, a meeting involving the game’s leaders and industry experts.

“Scouting has improved in Morocco, as have the facilities that can be deployed to develop local talent,” the newspaper stressed, adding that last summer the OCP Group signed a deal with the football federation and private partners to create a “national training fund dedicated to the professionalisation of training centres and the promotion of young talent.”

“Leading Moroccan clubs, with quality infrastructures behind them, have started to fill the prime places in Africa’s continental competitions: Casablanca’s Wydad lifted the CAF Champions League in 2017 and 2022 and their city rivals Raja won the CAF Confederation Cup in 2018 and 2021,” the New York Times pointed out.

 Morocco’s Lamia Boumehdi, winner of this year’s African Champions League with DR Congo’s TP Mazembe, won the Women’s Football Coach of the Year award at the CAF Awards 2024 ceremony in Marrakech on Monday.

Her team, TP Mazembe, had previously been named Women’s Club of the Year during the same ceremony.

Morocco will house the headquarters of FIFA Africa Office, under the terms of an agreement signed on Monday evening in Marrakech.

Inked by Morocco’s Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch, FIFA President Gianni Infantino and President of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) Fouzi Lekjaa, the agreement to host the African Office of the International Football Federation in Morocco falls in line with FIFA’s role in the advancement and promotion of football, while taking into account the universal, educational and cultural impact of the sport.

In addition, it aims to accompany and support all initiatives and projects aimed at developing football in Africa.

The signing of this agreement also reflects Morocco’s ongoing commitment to promoting football, and confirms FRMF’s key role as a member of FIFA.

Under the terms of the agreement, the Moroccan government and the FRMF undertake to implement measures to accompany and support FIFA’s projects. These include assisting FIFA with all the steps involved in staging its African Office in Morocco and making premises available to the office.

Both parties are also committed to facilitating the settlement in Morocco of the Federation’s foreign employees, and to assisting FIFA’s African Office with all administrative procedures required for its activities.

Speaking on the occasion, Akhannouch said that staging FIFA’s African Office reflects the trust put by international sporting institutions in Morocco, which just experienced a historic week following the Kingdom’s official nomination as 2030 World Cup host, alongside Spain and Portugal.

He also pledged that the Moroccan government would work to ease procedures involved in setting up and running the office.

For his part, Infantino welcomed signing the agreement for the headquarters of the FIFA Africa Office in Morocco, noting that the office would contribute to elevating Moroccan, African and world football. 

“This is a historic and exceptional day for FIFA, for Morocco and for the whole of Africa”, he said.

Infantino seized the opportunity to express his sincere gratitude to HM King Mohammed VI, who, he stated, is tirelessly working to promote the advancement of football in Africa.

FIFA’s President also praised the growth of Moroccan football and efforts made in this field by the FRMF and the government.

In turn, CAF President Patrice Motsepe expressed his gratitude to HM the King, the Moroccan government and people, as well as the FRMF for the Kingdom’s contributions to African football, adding that CAF is proud of Morocco’s achievements, both on and off the pitch.

The agreement for the headquarters of the FIFA Africa Office in Morocco was signed at the Congress Palace in Marrakech on the sidelines of the CAF Awards 2024 ceremony.

The choice of Morocco to co-organize the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal is a recognition of the Kingdom’s efforts to promote the beautiful game in Africa, President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Patrice Motsepe, said on Monday in Marrakech.

Morocco, under the wise leadership of HM King Mohammed VI, contributed greatly to developing football in Africa, by building a high-level sporting infrastructure, which has benefited many African countries, Motsepe said during the CAF Awards 2024 ceremony.

Noting that Morocco has always set the example, Motsepe urged African countries to follow in the Kingdom’s footsteps in terms of infrastructure development, particularly in sports.

The official thanked HM King Mohammed VI and the Royal Moroccan Football Federation for their efforts to promote the development of football in Africa.

He also thanked FIFA for the trust it has placed in Africa by entrusting Morocco with hosting the World Cup, expressing his conviction that the 2030 edition will belong to the entire African continent. 

Morocco hosted the CAF Awards ceremony for the third year running, after 2022 at the Mohammed VI Football Complex in Maâmoura (near Salé) and 2023 in Marrakech.

Moroccan internationals, Yassine Bouno, Achraf Hakimi and Soufiane Rahimi have been shortlisted for the “The Best FIFA Men’s XI” award, the world soccer’s governing body announced on its official website on Friday.

Yassine Bouno was crowned Saudi Arabian champion with Al-Hilal, Achraf Hakimi won the French championship with Paris Saint-Germain, while Soufiane Rahimi won the Asian Champions League with Al-Aïn, where he was top scorer.

Hakimi and Rahimi also won bronze medals with the national team at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Other African players in contention for a place in the FIFA XI include Gabonese and Nigerian strikers Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Ademola Lookman, and South African goalkeeper Ronwen Williams.

The Best FIFA Men’s and Women’s XI awards recognize the world’s best players in their respective positions, nominating players on the basis of their performances between August 21, 2023 and August 10, 2024.

The joint bid submitted by Morocco, Portugal and Spain to host the 2030 World Cup, only bid in contention, presents a “very strong all-round proposition” and exceeds “minimum hosting requirements” in the technical evaluation, The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) stated in its bid evaluation report.

First and foremost, the joint bid for the FIFA World Cup 2030 presents a very strong all-round proposition, the report says, adding that the FIFA administration has determined that this joint bid can be submitted to the FIFA Council and the FIFA Congress for consideration.

This is reflected in the results of the technical evaluation, which assesses the proposed infrastructure (both sporting and general) as well as its commercial potential, the report says.

The bid proposes a wide variety of generally high-quality venues across 17 diverse host cities, with a combination of existing, iconic and well-established facilities used by some of the most high-profile football clubs in the world, coupled with a number of modernisation projects, whether it be new-builds or upgrades, all of which have very strong legacy use cases. 

The joint bid submitted by Morocco, Portugal and Spain “looks to inspire and unite, using the collective passion for football across the three countries to bring people together and transcend boundaries, further tightening the bonds between two neighbouring continents and the world at large,” the report adds.

The report shows that, while the scale of construction projects within a six-year timeframe calls for rigorous monitoring and even, where necessary, support measures, it is worth highlighting the existence of mitigating factors, such as the fact that several projects have already been launched (notably in Morocco, where several stadiums are due to be delivered for the CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2025), the quality and completeness of the proposed plans, and the commitment around these projects, which testifies to a high degree of confidence. 

Based on the results of its technical evaluation, the Morocco/Spain/Portugal 2030 bid received an average score of 4.2/5. With regard to the Centenary Celebration, based on the results of its technical evaluation, the Argentina/Paraguay/Uruguay bid received an average score of 3.6/5.

The Morocco-Spain-Portugal 2030 bid offers varied and interesting stadium options, of which there are 20: six in Morocco, three in Portugal and 11 in Spain. This exceeds the minimum requirements (14 stadiums) decided for the 2030 World Cup, offering sufficient flexibility to choose diverse and emblematic venues in the three countries, the report says.

Of these 20 stadiums, one will be newly built and several will undergo major renovation work, the document states, adding that whatever their status, all have specific assets and are perfectly capable of hosting the World Cup.

Five of the six stadiums proposed by Morocco will also host CAN-2025 matches. All six are subject to to construction or refurbishment but “appear to be compliant with most or all of the requirements,” the report points out, noting that Morocco is presenting the Grand Stade Hassan II in Casablanca, which is destined to become the world’s largest soccer stadium and on which work is already underway.

The report adds that the Santiago Bernabéu stadium in Madrid, the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona and the Grand Stade Hassan II in Casablanca have been proposed for the opening match and the final.