AFCON
Moroccans can host CAN 2025
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
Coupe d’Afrique des nations (CAN) is what the Moroccans call the Africa Cup of Nations.
The kingdom has put up more interest in hosting the competition than any other bidding country has done, even as CAF has indefinitely and quietly shifted the announcement of the host for the competition that is expected to return to the original odd year calendar.
In terms of facility and infrastructure as well as generation of public interest in the continental prime sports competition, no bidding nation has done as much as Morocco have done.
The North African kingdom has been the ultimate destination for the hosting of top-notch sporting events, especially football. Most African countries without approved arenas have found the kingdom the ultimate destination as there are facilities are always on ready mode.
Within few weeks last December of being designated as hosts of the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup, Morocco hosted one of the seamless tournaments in which all participating clubs felt at home.
Carlo Ancelotti, the Real Madrid coach also commended the atmosphere occasioned in Morocco.
“We have had a fantastic atmosphere. The people and the fans have respected us. We are delighted to be here. We leave very happy”, remarked the famous Italian coach who achieved his ninth title with Real Madrid.
It was the third time that Morocco played host to the elite club competition. In the period of the last Club World Cup, the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) also played hosts to over 150 journalists across Africa.
They stayed for 10 days.
“We saw how the Club World Cup was perfectly organised, while Morocco only had a month to prepare. If the Kingdom managed all that in such a short time, it means that they can still do more if allowed to organize a CAN in 2025”, declared Wahany Johnson Sambou, a Senegalese journalist correspondent for Africanews in Senegal.
He adds that “everyone was amazed by what we saw here. We were able to see the six stadiums approved by CAF and FIFA.
Another Senegalese journalist, Mouhamed Coulibaly, living in Morocco as a freelance since 2019 spoke in similar vein.
“I had the chance to visit several sports facilities in Morocco in the cities of Tangier, Casablanca, Maâmora (Salé), Rabat, Marrakech, El Jadida, Agadir, among others. From what I have seen, Morocco is even capable of organizing a World Cup”, he remarked.
He sees as an advantage, the fact that Morocco has been a home to many teams outside the kingdom.
Next month, Guinea Bissau will host Nigeria in Agadir in one of the qualifiers for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. It was at the same Grand Stade d’Agadir that the Nigeria Super Eagles last year had their famous 10-0 defeat of Sao Tome and Principe.
Within the same March 2023, a near feast of African football will be holding in Morocco. Six countries will converge in Morocco for part of the qualifiers of the 2023 edition
It is the biggest assembly for the qualifiers. Those to play in Morocco are Guinea Bissau, Nigeria, Togo, Burkina Faso, Gambia and Mali.
Information from the Morocco’s Royal Football Federation (FRMF) has it that the federation has approved African football federations’ request to host AFCON 2024 qualifying matches in Morocco.
“In response to a request from a number of African football federations, the Royal Moroccan Football Federation agreed to host three matches in Morocco in March” as a part of the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, the FRMF said in a statement
This is in addition to Morocco playing a friendly match with Brazil in Tangier as their original Africa Cup of Nations’ qualifying fixture with Zimbabwe has been cancelled owing to the disqualification of the latter occasioned by FIFA ban.
The Moroccan National Tourism Office (ONMT) has kicked off a European promotional tour themed “Morocco, Land of Football” to boost the country’s visibility ahead of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). The roadshow, which began on June 16 and runs through June 23, is making stops in five key European cities: Madrid, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, and Milan.
According to a press release, the initiative is designed to enhance Morocco’s international profile through a blend of sports and cultural promotion, as the kingdom prepares to host the continent’s premier football tournament.
“Morocco is preparing to welcome Africa. Through this roadshow, we aim to tell a collective story of a country oriented towards the future, proud of its roots, and passionate about football,” said Achraf Fayda, Director General of ONMT.
The roadshow stems from a strategic partnership signed in April between the ONMT and the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), with the shared goal of positioning Morocco as a leading global destination for both football and tourism by 2030.
At each stop, the tour is expected to engage over 100 travel agents, tour operators, media professionals, and African tourism experts. Participants are treated to immersive, multisensory experiences that highlight Morocco’s tourism offerings, while also facilitating networking with sports personalities.
The campaign targets travel professionals, sports industry stakeholders, and digital content creators as part of ONMT’s broader strategy to leverage AFCON 2025 for tourism development and international branding.
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The African Football Confederation (CAF) and Royal Air Maroc (RAM) have sealed a historic strategic partnership that grants Morocco’s national airline the status of “Official Global Partner” for upcoming major African football competitions.
The agreement was signed Saturday morning in Casablanca, in the presence of Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) President Fouzi Lekjaâ.
This partnership encompasses several prestigious tournaments, including the CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco (AFCON) 2025 (December 21, 2025 – January 18, 2026) and CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations Morocco (WAFCON) 2024 (July 5-26, 2025).
The agreement also covers CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations 2025, CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations 2025, CAF Champions League 2024/2025 Finals, CAF Confederation Cup 2024/2025 Finals, and the CAF Women’s Champions League 2025.
CAF President Patrice Motsepe voiced enthusiasm about the collaboration.
“We are excited about the partnership between CAF and Royal Air Maroc, a world-class airline that will provide comfort and fly NationalTeams participating in the CAF competitions,” he said.
“We are confident that the CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 will be the most successful AFCON in the history of this competition.”
The agreement strengthens RAM’s footprint across Africa and globally, solidifying its role as a strategic gateway between Africa and the rest of the world. It also aligns with Morocco’s emergence as an international sports hub, with the country preparing to host AFCON 2025 and co-host the FIFA World Cup 2030.
RAM’s Chairman and CEO Hamid Addou stated: “This historic partnership with CAF aligns fully with our strategic vision as an airline deeply rooted in Africa and committed to its development.”
“Royal Air Maroc doesn’t just connect destinations; it builds bridges between cultures and passions. By supporting the continent’s biggest football competitions, we reaffirm our role as a facilitator of human and sporting exchanges,” he continued.
500,000 supporters expected
Beyond its partnership role, RAM will implement an exceptional operational system to meet increased demand during CAF competitions. The airline plans to welcome over 500,000 supporters for AFCON 2025.
“We believe we will surpass this figure by far,” revealed Addou. “We will be ready to accommodate these supporters across Royal Air Maroc’s entire network.”
The airline intends to double seat capacity from qualified countries already served by RAM, such as Dakar, Abidjan, Cairo, Tunis, Bamako, Lagos, and Douala.
RAM will also intensify flight frequencies from European cities with large African communities, including Paris, Brussels, Milan, London, Marseille, Lyon, Madrid, and Barcelona.
Additionally, the airline will establish a dedicated program for domestic air transport of national teams, shuttling them between their base camps and host cities.
This positioning establishes RAM as the primary connector between Africa and Europe through its Casablanca hub. FRMF President Fouzi Lekjaâ noted that the contract “reinforces Royal Air Maroc’s first-rate leadership role in Africa.”
“Royal Air Maroc is no stranger to football,” Lekjaâ added. “It has always supported generations of our athletes and footballers here in Morocco.”
“With this expertise and experience, they will contribute significantly to making AFCON 2025 Morocco exceptional, a historic turning point in African football, cultural coexistence and African cultural exchange,” he concluded.
Addou stressed RAM’s commitment to African unity: “We are all extremely proud to be African, and in every corner of this vast and magnificent continent, we share the same ambition—to actively contribute to Africa’s development and influence.”
The RAM CEO concluded by inviting everyone to upcoming CAF calendar events: “We’ll see you very soon for the great moments ahead in the CAF calendar, particularly the Women’s AFCON starting in July and, of course, the men’s AFCON, which kicks off on December 25.”
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The presidents of the regional councils concerned by the hosting of the matches of the Africa Cup of Nations (Morocco-2025) unanimously affirmed that the implementation of infrastructure projects in anticipation of this continental event “is progressing at a sustained pace”, declaring themselves “fully mobilized” to crown with success the major sporting events scheduled in the Kingdom.
They specified, in statements to the press in Rabat following a meeting at the headquarters of the Ministry of the Interior devoted to the assessment of the progress of the construction and rehabilitation works of the stadiums, that major sports infrastructure projects are underway in the six host cities: Rabat, Casablanca, Tangier, Fez, Marrakech and Agadir.
The President of the Casablanca-Settat Regional Council, Abdellatif Maâzouz, announced that the projects planned for upcoming international sporting events, in particular the 2025 African Cup of Nations and the 2030 World Cup, “are proceeding under good conditions.”
The projects related to the organisation of the AFCON will be ready by next July at the latest, he assured, specifying that there is a clear vision regarding the preparations underway for the AFCON and the 2030 World Cup, both in terms of equipment and organisational arrangements related to human resources and animation.
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