The grievances over the 1-0 loss against Senegal made us overlook Morocco’s real victory, the successful hosting of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
While the final match was a close-run contest between two equally strong teams, the tournament’s organization in Morocco was not a matter of chance, but of sustained efforts by the country. Massive financial resources, delicate administrative management, and strong political will made possible the amazing scenes of AFCON we witnessed throughout the tournament. Indeed, even CAF President Patrice Motsepe described this AFCON edition as the most successful in the history of African football.
Just consider what Morocco was able to achieve.
In terms of infrastructure, matches were held in nine stadiums across six cities, giving the tournament strong capacity to host large crowds across multiple venues. On the transportation side, wider infrastructure upgrades (rail, air, and roads) facilitated the mobility for teams and fans between host cities. And to ensure security during the tournament, Morocco adopted a national, CAF-aligned security plan that combined training, real-time surveillance, and multi-agency command centers. That this system that was studied by an FBI delegation that visited Morocco to observe the county’s matchday security setup speaks volumes about its originality and effectiveness.
These massive efforts in infrastructure and security ensured that AFCON visitors would have the safest, smoothest, and most enjoyable experience.
The critics of Morocco’s success would have us view this remarkable Moroccan story as a failure. How? They would have us focus on the Moroccan team’s debatable, controversial loss in the final, the chaotic withdrawal of Senegalese players, the remarks of the Egyptian coach on the event — anything that would distract us from the larger picture and the big achievement we accomplished as Moroccans.
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What these critics will not talk about is this: How Senegal’s walk-off during the final match was unjustifiable, inexcusable, and staged to distract the Moroccan team; how tens of thousands of fans made their way safely and smoothly to the stadium; or how the technical expertise and artistic touch were combined to create the striking visuals on display at the opening and final of the African championship.
None of this was a matter of chance. In fact, the risk of failure was high, but Morocco, through careful planning and delicate management, succeeded in this.
Yes, missing out on a long-awaited, well deserved Moroccan championship of the African Cup after fifty years is a disappointment for Moroccans who have shown unwavering and historic support for the Atlas Lions. I am not here to dismiss their feelings. But this is football: there is always a chance of defeat as victory. The real patriotism is that we support our national team at all times, especially bad times.
But behind this sad chapter lies another successful story: Morocco’s impressive organization of this African tournament is a story that should be a source of greater national pride.
Make no mistake: this is not a mere routine sporting event, but something bigger. This underscores Morocco as a country of exceptional potential in a region devastated by security and economic challenges — a country that is making its way toward further economic and infrastructure development.
This was clear proof to the world that Morocco is ready to host the World Cup 2030, and more importantly, is ready for more international investments. Security, infrastructure and expertise: This is what Morocco is offering.
So at the end we have two choices: either mourn the trophy we lost in the final — a trophy we can definitely win in the next tournaments — or celebrate a bigger win we had, a win that will mark a historic achievement for Morocco. Let us judge this tournament by the bigger win.
