Fouzi Lekjaa: CAN 2025 is the beginning of a process that will continue through history
The President of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), Fouzi Lekjaa, affirmed on Tuesday in Rabat that the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN), which will take place from December 21 to January 18 in Morocco, is the beginning of a process that will not stop at the 2030 World Cup but will continue throughout history.
“CAN 2025 will certainly be a reference for an African sporting event with a global dimension. It will not only be matches played in stadiums but it will be a major event in which all the vital forces of the country will unite behind His Majesty King Mohammed VI to make the CAN a true human celebration and a meeting of civilizations,” stated Mr. Lekjaa on the occasion of the official launch of the campaign “Morocco, Land of Football”, a major initiative celebrating the passion for football and the ambition of a Kingdom ready to welcome the world.
“Morocco, a land of football and host of major events, is and has always been a crossroads of civilizations that has always been capable of uniting African, European, Mediterranean, Islamic, Arab and Amazigh cultural identities,” he said, noting that football has merged throughout history to promote this cultural and historical richness of the Kingdom.
He noted that about 15,000 volunteers, including 1,500 of African origin, will be mobilized during the CAN, which reflects, he said, the enthusiasm that CAN Morocco 2025 will generate.
For his part, the Director General of the Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT), Achraf Fayda, reviewed the measures put in place to promote Morocco as a land of football in order to create synergy between sport and tourist attractiveness.
He noted that the ONMT and the FRMF are linked by a strategic agreement that embodies the union between football and tourism around a common ambition, adding that the objective is to position Morocco as a leading tourism and sporting destination through CAN 2025.
He indicated that B2B Africa workshops have brought together African tour operators with Moroccan tourism professionals in Rabat, Tangier, Casablanca, Marrakech and Agadir, in addition to roadshows organized in the main European capitals of the diaspora.
Mr. Fayda also highlighted the strategy implemented to make the Kingdom an air hub during the African celebration through a reinforced air bridge, noting that the ONMT is joining its major international partners to transform the passion for football into a tourism opportunity, in addition to mobilizing Moroccan travel agencies for the promotion of the CAN.
He also pointed out that a partnership has been concluded with influencers and content creators from the 24 participating countries in order to promote the six host cities and showcase the infrastructure and tourism assets of the Kingdom.
For his part, the Secretary General of the International Federation of Football (FIFA), Mattias Grafström, affirmed that Morocco is not only a land of football but also home to the Under 20 world champions.
“Morocco is a nation where football is a passion,” he said, noting that for many years the Kingdom has hosted matches of African national teams that did not have stadiums approved by FIFA, which demonstrates once again that Morocco is a country of hospitality.
According to the FIFA Secretary General, this initiative combining tourism and football is “magnificent” especially since these two sectors make the world dream.
The Secretary General of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Véron Mosengo Omba, expressed the same view, highlighting the efforts deployed by Morocco to make the 2025 edition the best CAN in history, noting that “the signs are already there”.
In this context, the CAF SG thanked His Majesty King Mohammed VI for making world class sports facilities available to Morocco and to Africa.
The FRMF and the ONMT sealed in April a strategic agreement around a shared ambition which aims to enhance the image of Morocco through football.
The film accompanying this campaign offers a refined and poetic vision of the Kingdom where sport unfolds like a vital breath, animating daily life and revealing the passion that unites an entire country.
“Morocco, Land of Football” will be broadcast simultaneously in more than ten international markets in digital format through a 90 second film and its variations. In Morocco, the campaign will also be expressed through television, billboards, press and radio in order to share widely this celebration of a country whose passion for football reflects its identity and hospitality.
Editorial team/le7tv
