Sport in Morocco

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Sports in Morocco refers to the sports played in the

athletics. Hicham El Guerrouj, a retired middle distance runner for Morocco, won two gold medals for Morocco at the Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics.[1]

African descent and is Morocco's most popular sport. Other popular sports include: athletics, Futsal, basketball, boxing, golf, netball, swimming, surfing and tennis
.

Ministry of Youth and Sports

The Moroccan Ministry of Youth and Sports was founded in August 1964 and houses all the sporting federations in the country. Despite the Ministry's mission to engage young people in sporting opportunities, many Moroccan athletes denounce the institution as not giving young Moroccans enough sponsorship or opportunities to play sports professionally.[2]

Host of events

Morocco will host the FIFA World Cup in 2030 with Portugal and Spain to be the first by more than one continent to host the tournament which Morocco finally won the right having failed five times. It will be the first time that Morocco has hosted it, the second country in African after 2010 in South Africa, the second Arab country after Qatar in 2022 and the first in North Africa.[3]

Morocco hosted the 2019 African Games in Rabat; it was the first time that the country hosted the event. It was the largest African Games ever and the largest sporting event to be hosted by Morocco.

In 2019, it was announced that Morocco would host the inaugural African Para Games in Rabat in January 2020.

Africa Paralympic Committee and the country's authorities, Morocco withdrew and the event took place in Cairo
, Egypt.

Morocco has hosted many international events such as the 1988 African Cup of Nations,[5] 2013 FIFA Club World Cup,[6] 2014 FIFA Club World Cup, 2018 African Nations Championship,[7] 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations,[8] 2022 FIFA Club World Cup,[9] 2024 Women's Africa Cup of Nations[10] and the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.[11] Most of the events hosted are football related since it is the most popular sport in the country.

Other events hosted include:

By Sport

Football

See also: Football in Morocco
Morocco at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia
Moroccan football fans at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

The

FIFA Executive Committee has unanimously accepted the Morocco-Spain-Portugal bid as a candidate to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup.[21][22][23]

Botola

Main article: Botola

The "Botola" Pro is the top league competition for

Raja Casablanca.[24]

The Moroccan top-flight has produced the second-highest number of CAF Champions League titles, with three Moroccan clubs having won seven African trophies in total.[25][26] They also produced the highest number of CAF Confederation Cup titles, with five Moroccan clubs having won seven African confederation trophies.[27]

Futsal

Morocco's popularity for Futsal has risen over the years due to its similarity to

Africa Futsal Cup of Nations twice.[30] They also won the Arab Futsal Cup three times.[31][32]

Morocco qualified for the FIFA Futsal World Cup three times, Their best performance was in 2021, where they reached the round of 16.[33][34] Morocco is the only African and Arab country to have won the Futsal Confederations Cup.[35][36]

Basketball

Morocco first joined the FIBA in 1936. It has won one AfroBasket title and one AfroCan title.[37][38]

Kickboxing

Morocco is known for having great Kickboxing fighters, Badr Hari is considered to be one of the best Kickboxer in the world.

Equestrian sports

Morocco has a vibrant equestrian sports community headed by the Royal Moroccan Equestrian Federation. Morocco's most famous equestrian, Abdelkebir Ouaddar, represented the country in the 2014 Normandy World Equestrian Games and 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.[39]

Motorsport

  • Moroccan Grand Prix (Formula One, sports car, and touring car racing)
  • Marrakech Street Circuit
    (World Touring Car Championship)
  • Miss Moto Maroc (all female motorcycle club in Morocco)

Mehdi Bennani is Morocco's most notable racing driver. He has competed in the World Touring Car Championship since 2009, where he has scored a number of top three finishes. In 2014 he scored his first WTCC win at the championship's Shanghai round.[40]

Cricket

Morocco hosted the 2002 Morocco Cup, which was well attended.[41] Sri Lanka beat South Africa in the final.[42]

Morocco boasts an ICC approved ground capable of hosting full internationals, the National Cricket Stadium in Tangier. It has so far hosted a One Day International triangular tournament, the Morocco Cup in 2002, where Sri Lanka won ahead of South Africa and Pakistan.

Basketball

See also:
Morocco national basketball team

Morocco, represented by the

Nationale 1. On 16 July 2023, Morocco won the 2023 FIBA AfroCan Final after beating Cote d'Ivoire 78-76 that took place in Luanda, Angola, Thus marking their first continental trophy since 1965.[44][45][46]

Women's volleyball

Morocco has a successful women's national volleyball team which lastly qualified for the 2021 Women's African Nations Volleyball Championship[47] where it won the bronze medal.

Rugby union

Main articles: Rugby union in Morocco and Morocco national rugby union team

World War, with many Moroccan players going away to fight.[48] Like many other Maghreb
nations, Moroccan rugby tended to look to Europe for inspiration, rather than to the rest of Africa.

Notable Moroccan players include:

Ice Hockey

Morocco was admitted into the International Ice Hockey Federation on May 22, 2010.[49]

Stadiums

  • Stade d'Agadir
  • Stade Cheikh Laaghdef
  • Stade Complexe Sportif
  • Stade d'Honneur
  • Stade Larbi Zaouli
  • Stade Mohammed V
  • Stade Moulay Abdellah
  • Stade de Tanger
  • Stade de Marrakech
  • Complexe OCP
  • Saniat Rmel
  • Stade Al Inbiaâte
  • Stade El Abdi
  • Stade El Harti
  • Stade El Massira
  • Stade Marche Verte
  • Stade Municipal (Kenitra)
  • Stade Sidi Bernoussi
  • Stade d'Honneur (Meknes)
  • Stade de Marchan
  • Stade du 20 Août
  • Complexe Al Amal de Casablanca
See also: List of indoor arenas in Morocco

See also

References

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  2. ^ Yabiladi.com. "Moroccan athelete [sic] Hicham El Guerrouj is pessimistic about national athleticism". en.yabiladi.com. Retrieved 2019-03-21.
  3. ISSN 0261-3077
    . Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  4. ^ "All set for first African Para Games". Paralympic. April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  5. ^ "African Nations Cup 1988". RSSSF. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  6. ^ Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "Countdown to FIFA Club World Cup Morocco 2013 well underway". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  7. ^ "Morocco replace Kenya as CHAN hosts". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  8. ^ "Decisions of CAF Executive Committee – 15 January 2021". CAF. 15 January 2021.
  9. ^ Kasraoui, Safaa. "Morocco Confirmed as Host of FIFA Club World Cup 2022". moroccoworldnews. Retrieved 2022-12-24.
  10. ^ "Again, CAF approves Morocco as WAFCON host In 2024". blueprint.ng. 10 August 2022.
  11. ^ "CAF awards the AFCON 2025 to Morocco and the AFCON 2027 to Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda". CAF. 2023-09-27. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  12. ^ "3rd Pan Arab Games, 1961 (Casablanca, Morocco)". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
  13. ^ "Casablanca 1983". 70 Years Mediterranean Games. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
  14. ^ "6th Pan Arab Games, 1985 (Morocco)". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
  15. ^ "African U-21 Championship 1997". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
  16. ^ Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "Relive 2011 U-23 AFCON: When Gabon stunned the entire continent | Total U-23 Africa Cup of Nations Egypt 2019". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
  17. ^ Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "CAF Beach Soccer World Cup Qualifiers begin in Morocco". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
  18. ^ Kasraoui, Safaa. "Morocco to Host All-Africa Games 2019". moroccoworldnews. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
  19. ^ Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "Laayoune ready for Futsal party | Total Futsal Africa Cup of Nations". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
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  21. ^ "FIFA accepts Morocco-Spain-Portugal World Cup bid, King announces". HESPRESS English - Morocco News. 2023-10-04. Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  22. ^ Kasraoui, Safaa (4 October 2023). "Morocco, Spain, and Portugal Confirmed as Joint Hosts of 2030 World Cup". Morocco World News. p. 1. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  23. ^ Team, Newslooks (2023-10-04). "Morocco, Spain and Portugal to host 2030 World Cup". NewsLooks. Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  24. ^ "Wydad Casablanca, Rankings and Statistics". Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  25. ^ "African Champions' Cup". RSSSF. Retrieved 2022-10-09.
  26. ^ "CAF Champions League - Champions". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 2022-10-09.
  27. ^ "CAF Cup and Confederation Cup". RSSSF. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
  28. ^ Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "Laayoune ready for Futsal party | Total Futsal Africa Cup of Nations". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  29. ^ Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "Octet hunt for Futsal crown in Morocco | Total Futsal Africa Cup of Nations". CAFOnline.com. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  30. ^ "Futsal 2020: Morocco Wins African Cup of Nations – The North Africa Post". Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  31. ^ Soliman, Seif (2021-05-29). "Morocco win first Arab Futsal Cup after thrashing Egypt". KingFut. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  32. ^ Latrech, Oumaima. "Morocco Defeats Iraq, Wins 2022 Arab Futsal Cup". moroccoworldnews. Retrieved 2022-11-09.
  33. ^ Haskouri, Khouloud. "Brazil Ends Morocco's Impressive, Historic Participation in 2021 Futsal World Cup". moroccoworldnews. Retrieved 2022-11-09.
  34. ^ "Morocco make history in world futsal". Atalayar. Retrieved 2022-11-09.
  35. ^ Zouiten, Sara. "Morocco Beats Iran, Wins 2022 Continental Futsal Championship". Morocco World News.
  36. ^ "Morocco Wins Continental Futsal Championship in Thailand – The North Africa Post". Retrieved 2022-09-16.
  37. ^ "Morocco win the 2023 FIBA AfroCan". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2023-07-18.
  38. ^ Ntungwabona, Ahmed. "Basketball: Atlas Lions Crowned African champion". moroccoworldnews. Retrieved 2023-07-18.
  39. ^ "OUADDAR Abdelkebir - Olympic Equestrian | Morocco". 2016-08-22. Archived from the original on 2016-08-22. Retrieved 2019-03-21.
  40. autosport.com
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  41. ^ "Looking ahead to the Morocco Cup 2002". Cricinfo. Retrieved 2017-12-16.
  42. ^ "Morocco Cup". Cricinfo. Retrieved 2017-12-16.
  43. ^ Morocco (MAR), FIBA
  44. ^ "Morocco win the 2023 FIBA AfroCan". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
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  48. ^
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  49. ^ "Welcome Morocco". www.iihf.com. Archived from the original on 2010-12-28.
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