The president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), Fouzi Lekjaa, has announced that he will appeal the decision of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) after Morocco’s non-participation in the African Nations Championship (CHAN).

The national team of the local team had not been able to participate in the last edition of the CHAN, because Algeria had not opened its airspace to Morocco. Although CAF ruled in favour of Morocco, the body did not point the finger of blame. Fouzi Lekjaa has indicated that he will appeal the decision.

Indeed, CAF’s disciplinary panel met to deliberate on the case submitted to it by the CHAN 2022 Organising Committee, following the non-appearance of the Moroccan team in Algeria for the tournament and the statement made during the CHAN opening ceremony.

In its decision, the disciplinary panel concluded that the FRMF should not be sanctioned, rejecting the Algerian Football Federation’s claim for damages.

On the issue of the statement made during the opening ceremony of the CHAN on 13 January 2023 by Zwelivelile Mandela, grandson of the South African leader, Nelson Mandela, CAF considered that “the Algerian Football Federation should not be held vicariously liable, and that the provisions of strict liability could not be foreseen and should not apply after the statement made by Zwelivelile Mandela during the opening ceremony of the CHAN.

Speaking to Radio Mars, Lekjaa said he was ” unsatisfied ” with CAF’s decision, saying it had not mentioned anyone responsible for Morocco’s non-participation and that a call to order for the FAF following the hateful comments made against the Kingdom was not enough.

“We are not satisfied with CAF’s decision and we will appeal. CAF has confirmed that Morocco is not responsible for its non-participation in the CHAN but it did not mention who is responsible,” he said, referring to the African body’s decision not to sanction Algeria.

“It is unreasonable that our team is prevented from defending its title and Moroccan fans are insulted with obscene and racist language at the opening ceremony and in the presence of senior CAF officials while allowing a person without legitimacy to speak. A speech that carries hatred and targets us, and after that these decisions are made,” he continued.

“These are unfair decisions, we will not remain silent and I have contacted our legal advisory body to appeal the decision, and it will be done,” he assured, saying he will not make any concession after being treated unfairly.

Read Also: CHAN 2022: The CAF does not sanction Morocco

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The president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), Fouzi Lekjaa, received a message of congratulations from the Egyptian Minister of Youth and Sports and head of the Executive Bureau of the Council of Arab Ministers of Youth and Sports, Ashraf Sobhi.

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In a statement published on Thursday 9 February on its official website, the FRMF said that the president of the federal body, Fouzi Lekjaa received congratulations from the Egyptian Minister of Youth and Sports for the excellent organization of the FIFA Club World Cup Morocco 2022, currently organized in the Kingdom from 1 to 11 February 2023 in Rabat and Tangier.

“Mr. Sobhi also praised the Moroccan welcome and hospitality that was reserved for the delegation of the Egyptian club Al Ahly, while recalling that Mr. Fouzi Lekjaa is permanently militating in favour of the defence of the interests of African football in his capacity as a member of the FIFA Council,” reads the FRMF’s press release.

As a reminder, all the delegations participating in the Club World Cup in Morocco as well as the president of Fifa, Gianni Infantino, have expressed their admiration for the excellence of the organization, the welcome and the hospitality of Morocco during this competition.

Read Also: The ONCF joins FIFA’s efforts to ensure the success of the MOROCCO 2022 Club World Cup (press release)

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Morocco says it still hasn’t gotten an official response from either Algeria or the Confederation of African Football about its request for its squad to fly straight to the Algerian city of Constantine for the 2023 African Nations Championship (CHAN) (CAF).

Due to Algeria’s travel restrictions on flights from Morocco, the North African nation of Morocco’s Football Federation (FRMF) said last week that it was thinking about boycotting the continental competition.

The federation said that it will only take part in the competition provided a direct flight is available from Rabat to Constantine, the location in northeastern Algeria where the Moroccan team will play its group matches.

At a news conference on December 29, the president of the FRMF, Fouzi Lekjaa, reaffirmed Morocco’s appeal, stressing that the host nation “shall” implement all measures to make it easier for nations to participate in the competition.

Morocco Is Not in a Rush
The request from Morocco has still not received a response, according to a FRMF source reported on Monday by the Moroccan news portal Le360.

However, the source added, “We don’t want to rush things. We are being patient while expecting the Algerian authorities’ reaction. Today, according to convergent reports, Algeria “formally” rejected Morocco’s proposal.

It is not surprising that a senior member of the Algerian organizing committee for CHAN stated last week that it is not the host nation’s responsibility to respond to Morocco’s request.

Rachid Oukali, the director of the CHAN organizing committee, stated last week that Algeria is “not responsible for assuring the availability of a direct route for the participating teams.” This was in response to news that Morocco had requested permission for its team to travel straight to Algeria.

According to the Algerian official, “the majority of the African nations that will travel to Algeria will make stopovers.”

In response, FMRF’s president, Fouzi Lekjaa, maintained Morocco’s request for permission for a special Royal Air Maroc flight to take the Moroccan national team to the Algerian city where they are scheduled to play.

“The official airline for Morocco is Royal Air Maroc. We have asked for permission to allow Royal Air Maroc to transport the national team directly to the host country. We have not asked Algeria to provide us with a private flight or anything of that sort,” he stressed.

Political Context
Following the Algerian government’s decision to sever diplomatic ties with Morocco, which was announced in August 2021, there have been difficult relations between Algeria and Morocco.

To maintain regional stability, Morocco has repeatedly appealed for de-escalation of the conflict and “brotherly discussion,” but the Algerian leadership has steadfastly refused to listen.

Instead, a diplomatically weakened and economically struggling Algerian leadership has turned hostilities against Morocco into a rallying cry, according to numerous analysts in recent months.

It appears that the plan is to depict Morocco as an existential danger to Algerian interests and security. Abdelmadjid Tebboune , the president of Algeria, eloquently stated in an interview last week that his country severed ties with Morocco “to prevent going to war.”

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After surpassing the role of the groups of the 2022 Qatar World Cup Finals by winning their group by seven points, Fouzi Lekjaa, president of the Royal Federation of Morocco Football, affirmed that Morocco’s national team has the qualifications to be able to play with any other team.

In an interview with Morocco Telegraph, he said that the national team had a chance to defeat Spain as the opening game in a group that also featured Belgium, the second-ranked team in the world, and Croatia, the runner-up.

He stated that “I think all the factors are there to go as far as possible” when “there is will, the mental aspect, and when the group is in a good position”.

Returning to the defeat of Canada (2-1) and the subsequent qualifying for the round of 16, he said that he shared a feeling of pride with all Moroccans “pride and honor,” stating that “the Moroccan crowd was mesmerized, the national song played a magnificent moment. Because of His Majesty King Mohammed VI’s leadership, we have put forth a lot of effort and experienced these life-changing events.”

In light of the fact that “the competition of the World Cup is not only physical or technical preparation but also mental preparation, which is an essential factor,” the president of the Royal Football Federation of Morocco noted that following the victory over Canada and qualifying for the eighth Final, he called on players to believe in their potential and confidence.

When you enter the field of play without an inferiority complex, you can compete with any squad, he said.

Regarding the national team’s physical condition following the match against Canada, Mr. Lekjaa stated that “the medical staff is tracking the best techniques.”

Returning to the selection of Walid Regragui as national team coach, he clarified that “Today, everyone agrees that my choice was wise. I had to make a choice, and I did. I have accepted and will continue to accept responsibility for it.”

He added: “It had that vibe that the national team needed (…). It was important to create a positive environment for the group. I had finally created the ideal profile.”

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Fouzi Lekjaa, president of the FRMF, will head the national delegation that will travel to Qatar ahead of the 2022 World Cup.

The delegation from Morocco, traveling to Qatar will be led by its president, Fouzi Lekjaa, of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF).

All the players are called, with a few exceptions, to join the Atlas Lions flight, which will depart from Rabat on Sunday, November 13.

In fact, they will meet in Doha with the other Atlas Lions chosen by their individual teams. Specifically, there will be games in the Belgian Jupiler Pro League, Turkish Super Ligue, English Premier League, French Ligue 1, and English Premier League the next weekend.

Croatia, Belgium, and Canada are the Atlas Lions’ Pool F opponents in Qatar on November 23, November 27, and December 1, respectively.

To play Georgia, the sole friendly game on the Moroccan schedule, on November 17, Romain Saiss’ teammates will move to the United Arab Emirates.

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