African Residents in Morocco Await an Exceptional Football Celebration at the 'Morocco CAN'

With the countdown to the start of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations matches in Morocco underway, the African communities residing in the kingdom are preparing to weave their own story with the 'CAN'. Their great hopes for their national teams to advance far in the continental competition, which millions of Africans aspire to, culminating in winning the cup, blend with an equally strong confidence in the host country's ability to organize an exceptional football celebration.

Voices of African immigrants living in Morocco, whose national teams are participating in the continental event, heard by Hespress, express "burning enthusiasm to support these teams and back them from inside the stadium stands that will host intense matches in Casablanca, Rabat, Tangier, Marrakech, Agadir, and Fez."

From the testimonies of those involved also emerges "pride in the Moroccan sports infrastructure that will host the matches," alongside "humanitarian demands to simplify and facilitate access to stadiums for all African migrants through more flexible mechanisms than the current ones."

Jonas Osona, a Congolese resident in Morocco, spoke with great enthusiasm about his country's participation, the Democratic Republic of Congo, in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, affirming his confidence in "the Congolese team's ability to go far in this continental competition."

Osona told Hespress: "Of course, as a Congolese living in Morocco, I must support my country's team in the CAN matches, as we already know we will soon achieve victory."

The civil activist, a prominent figure within the Congolese community in Morocco for years, added that "the atmosphere surrounding the tournament, with the first whistle approaching, is wonderful and charged with optimism," but he also raised "a fundamental difficulty faced by many community members, which is the ticket purchasing system through electronic platforms."

According to him, "there are many people who cannot read or use digital media, making accessing the platform and buying tickets complicated," adding that "the requirement to have a bank account increases the difficulty, especially for migrants who do not yet have all administrative documents."

The Congolese resident hopes that "the relevant authorities will consider more flexible mechanisms that enable African communities in Morocco, and all concerned, to access the stadiums so they are not deprived of watching their teams from the stands."

Apart from these challenges, Osona did not hide his great admiration for Morocco's sports infrastructure, praising the quality of the stadiums hosting the continental competition, describing them as "the best compared to several African countries, such as Cameroon and Nigeria," congratulating the kingdom, "especially King Mohammed VI, for building stadiums that meet international standards."

Aisha Ahmed, from the Egyptian community in Morocco, will keenly follow all matches of the Egyptian national team, whether from the Tangier stadium or remotely if she cannot travel to other host cities, she confirms.

Ahmed told Hespress that the general atmosphere in Morocco indicates "strong popular support" for the Moroccan national team, "given that the kingdom aspires to be the one to lift the continental cup in this year's CAN edition."

However, the speaker, a journalist at a Moroccan radio station, points to a "beautiful tradition" of mutual support between Moroccan and Egyptian fans, noting: "We saw this football solidarity at the World Cup, where most Egyptians supported the Moroccan team, and Moroccans, in turn, support the Egyptian team when their own team is absent from a football competition."

Regarding the availability of suitable conditions for communities and newcomers to support their national teams, the resident who witnessed Morocco's preparations to host the "continental football celebration" from the city of the Strait, where she lives, said that "Morocco has largely provided suitable environments for the African community and newcomers to the country, whether in terms of accommodation, transportation, or infrastructure."

Ahmed considered these initial indicators to be encouraging for an excellently successful organization of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, despite the first match whistle not having been blown yet.

Although the Guinea Conakry national team has not secured qualification for the 2025 CAN to be a guest in the kingdom, a Guinean citizen told Hespress of his keenness to follow the continental event matches, expressing great happiness about the Africa Cup of Nations being organized in Morocco.

Speaking with a collective spirit, the Guinean resident in Morocco added that "migrants in this country are very happy to attend this major continental event."

He praised the indicators of quality organization and stadiums that "arouse pride," saying: "Moroccans have organized well and done a great job; they have built good stadiums here. We are very proud of all that."

The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations competition is expected to open in the capital Rabat next Sunday and continue until January 18.