2030 World Cup: Lekjaa mentions a turning point in the history of Morocco and announces the opening date of the Rabat stadium

Speaking a few hours before the official announcement of the designation of the Morocco-Spain-Portugal trio as host of the 2030 World Cup, through the vote of the 74th Extraordinary FIFA Congress, the president of the FRMF, Fouzi Lekjaa, assured that this Wednesday's event would remain etched in the history of the Kingdom. During his appearance on Radio Mars, Mr. Lekjaâ recalled that Morocco was reaping the fruits of the Royal vision and the projects launched more than two decades ago: "December 11, 2024, in my view, will be a turning point in the history of the Kingdom, of Moroccan football, of Moroccan sport, but also of the Moroccan mind-set... Today, it is the culmination of a process. We must not forget also, for the less young, they will savour it more, but for the younger ones, those who have lived and who will grow up with this, I think it is a radical change in the state of mind and that it will confirm the vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God glorify him. It will also accelerate the process, the Morocco desired by His Majesty King Mohammed VI for his people. A Morocco that represents a true regional power in all fields. The project does not date from yesterday; we did not wait for the World Cup to put in place the development processes. His Majesty King Mohammed VI initiated this process 25 years ago, on all levels: our infrastructure, our motorways, our ports, our airports, the human being, the Moroccan present in all fields, whether in Morocco or Moroccans of the world. That is the greatness of a nation. We are not starting from nothing; we are a nation that has more than 12 centuries of history. That is our strength. We have lived through all the historical stages of humanity, we were there, Morocco, the Kingdom". The president of the FRMF also confided that the pace of work would now accelerate: "For 2030, I am a bit in the football sphere. Far from saying that we have no complexes, we are here, we are present, and we will also be with future generations who will know how to do better. We will confirm this presence further. First on the development process, to accelerate the changes and structural projects, as was validated during the Council of Ministers chaired by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God glorify him. We know our workload and we know what we have to do. Our projects are there and the work started a good while ago".

The Atlas Lions no longer have "the right to step back"! If the infrastructure aspect occupies most of the attention with the officialization of the adoption of the tripartite candidacy and the upcoming arrival of the 2025 AFCON, Fouzi Lekjaâ did not fail to mention the sporting plan and the future of the Atlas Lions. The boss of national football declared that the national team had to meet higher requirements, given its exploits achieved since 2022: "During the Olympic Games in Paris, Arsène Wenger told me that we had the best team in the tournament, along with Spain. Afterwards, we regret not having won the gold medal. We were also euphoric after the 2022 World Cup, but we regretted the defeat against France in the semi-final. If we had come back to the score, if the penalty had been whistled or El Yamiq's shot had not hit the post, we might have snatched qualification for the final... Today, the present and future generations know that it is possible! The generation that will play the next Olympic Games also knows perfectly well that it is capable of winning the gold medal. It also knows that if it does not win, it is because it was not up to the challenges and ambitions... Our team will be in the same line regarding the development of the country, up to the aspirations of our exceptional public. We cannot live without a challenge, we must move forward. We have savoured qualifications and exploits, we do not have the right to step back. The starting point will be in a year, it will be done from the new Moulay Abdellah complex, on the occasion of the Africa Cup." A new gem approaches the den Sparkling with LOSC in Ligue 1 and the Champions League, at 17 years old, Ayoub Bouaddi is establishing himself as one of the greatest budding talents in the French championship this season. Expected in the France U21 team, the gem should finally join the Atlas Lions, according to Fouzi Lekjaâ: "We have discussed extensively with Ayoub, who is purely Moroccan, a pure Moroccan product, Moroccan culture. God willing, Morocco will be proud of its little one and the little one will be proud to wear the national colours. We shouldn't even complicate life... Even the young player's family knows our project very well." Reinforcement therefore for Regragui's midfield, which already knows the presence of excellent players in full progression, such as Bilal El Khannouss, Oussama Targhaline and Ismael Sibari. The Moulay Abdellah Complex operational in March The other big news announced by Fouzi Lekjaâ on Wednesday is the imminent opening of the new Rabat stadium next March. The next two matches counting for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers will also be played there. "Next March, we will play our two matches in one of the most beautiful stadiums in the world and not just on our continent, in my opinion, the Rabat stadium, with a capacity of 70,000 spectators, 1,300 seats in the boxes... What is important is that this transformation and this development will concern the entire national territory. Development, integrated change, job creation, youth, inclusion... These are all huge, structural development plans that have been initiated and that will continue at accelerated speeds. It is the project of a nation, of a people, mobilized behind its King, to move quickly and safely," explained Mr. Lekjaâ. Eyes are now fixed on the venues in Casablanca, Marrakech, Agadir and Tangier, whose opening is also scheduled for the beginning of next year, a few months before the kick-off of the Morocco 2025 AFCON.