Staging the Africa Cup of Nations part of Morocco's bid to become a soccer superpower

RABAT, Morocco — Staging the Africa Cup of Nations from Sunday is another major step in Morocco's road to becoming a global soccer power and a dry run as a co-host for the 2030 World Cup.

Three years after reaching the semifinals of the 2022 World Cup, the North African kingdom will host 24 teams from across the continent and welcome spectators to nine new or renovated stadiums in six cities.

It's only the second time Morocco has hosted the biennial tournament, but it comes at a time when it regularly stages other African nations' ''home'' games for World Cup qualifiers, and after it secured the rights to host five Under-17 Women's World Cups in a row. It also hosted the Women's Africa Cup of Nations in July.

Curtain-raiser for greater ambitions

Officials have framed this Africa Cup as a high-visibility dress rehearsal for the World Cup in 2030, when Morocco will be one of the main co-hosts alongside Spain and Portugal. Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay will also host a game each.

Morocco harbors high hopes of staging the final in Hassan II Stadium, set to be the largest soccer arena in the world with a capacity of 115,000 after its planned completion in 2028.

The new national stadium is arguably the highlight of one of the most aggressive infrastructure buildouts in African sporting history. Morocco has pursued rapid development in other sectors as well, with airports updated, high-speed rail lines expanded and major tourism investments to welcome visitors to cities like Marrakech and Tangier.

Morocco's most promising young stars are being provided with all of the facilities they need to thrive. It's already paying off. Morocco's run to the semifinals of the 2022 World Cup was the first by any African or Arab side. The country also won the Under-20 World Cup in October.

''It's not dreaming, we have legitimate ambitions,'' Fouzi Lekjaa, the president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, told French sports paper L'Equipe in July.

Lekjaa, who also oversees budget issues in the Moroccan prime minister's cabinet, sees sport as a lever of economic development.

Not everyone is on board

The investments have not come without tension, sparking heated debate about the country's priorities. While thousands of visitors will see areas dense with hotels, restaurants, new roads and other tourist infrastructure, large swaths of the country present a stark contrast. In rural regions far from financial centers, residents complain of neglect and lack of investment. Key issues include health, literacy and employment.

Young people especially are frustrated by overcrowded schools, aging hospitals, and uneven basic services. Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch's government was accused of funneling billions toward prestige projects like stadiums instead of addressing urgent social needs. Multiple members of Morocco's national team publicly backed the protests. King Mohammed VI said in October that the two categories of development were not at odds or in competition with each other.

Regional strains

The tournament also comes as Morocco works to cement its role as a regional power. As part of the country's ''Atlantic Initiative,'' it has worked to deepen ties with landlocked countries in West and Central Africa, expanding the footprint of its banking and telecom industries and providing those without a coastline access to newly built ports.

Morocco's normalization of ties with Israel brought it closer to the United States and it has also won backing from most European Union members to keep sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara. It remains a source of tension with Algeria despite a U.N. Security Council resolution this year that Morocco framed as a breakthrough. The Polisario Front, based in southern Algeria, wants the territory's independence.

Morocco has offered tourist visas to spectators attending the Africa Cup, even as it has moved in recent years to curb migration from some of the countries whose teams are participating. Visa requirements for people from Ivory Coast, for example, were reinstated last year for reasons including to curb irregular attempts at migration.

The kingdom has faced criticism from migrant rights groups for clearing encampments, moving migrants to remote areas far from Europe's borders and other aggressive enforcement measures.

The Moroccan Association for Human Rights' Rabat branch said this week there has been an uptick in arbitrary arrests and forced expulsions of migrants in the lead-up to the Africa Cup.

The final on Jan. 18 in Rabat will be at Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, which opened in September.

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