“We just wanted to experience the magic”, from Casablanca to Doha, thousands of Moroccan fans aggrieved?

There should be only red, with a few small spots of blue, here and there, this Tuesday evening at the Al Bayt stadium in Doha, for the semi-final of the World Cup between Morocco and France. About 40,000 supporters of the Atlas Lions are announced for this historic moment, where they should, once again, as since the start of the competition, put a big atmosphere in the stands, up to the performance of the men of Walid Regragui.

An impressive enthusiasm reinforced by the promises of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) to give 13,000 places to supporters traveling to Qatar. To promote this operation, the national company Royal Air Maroc (RAM) had decided to operate nearly 30 special flights between Casablanca and Doha on Tuesday and Wednesday. But it all ended in failure and the daydream experienced by many Moroccan fans turned into a huge nightmare.

Four hours of waiting under the sun for nothing

This is particularly the case of Laila, originally from Fez, who came with her brother and sister, who finds herself without a ticket to Doha, despite the promises of the FRMF. “On landing, the captain informed us that the Federation was asking us to move to the Al Janoub stadium, where there would be ticket distribution. We left there at 7 a.m., we waited in the blazing sun for four hours. All this to ask us to leave at 11 o’clock, because there are no tickets. »

On arrival at Doha airport, many other Moroccan supporters, without tickets for the match, also realize that there will be no distribution carried out by the officials of the federation. “There was vague communication from the Federation promising tickets, the people who arrived got nothing, tells us Kamil, from Rabat, who had a ticket for the match already in hand. . The supporters were therefore not happy and decided to stay at the airport. »

Flights canceled from Casablanca

There followed a sit-in in protest, hoping that the FRMF will resolve the situation as soon as possible. In vain. “It got out of hand because they didn’t want to leave the airport without their match ticket,” said Hasen*, who had no problem because he had his match ticket already purchased. “The Moroccans who arrived at Doha airport were unhappy not to find the officials of the federation as promised to give the tickets, confirms Laila. Nerves heated and there were some arguments. Contacted, the Moroccan federation did not respond to our requests.

Following this episode, the Qatari authorities imposed restrictions on the arrival of Moroccan supporters and many flights scheduled from Casablanca’s Mohammed V airport were canceled, even for those who already had a ticket for the half. -World Cup final, like Mohammed. “I paid 10,000 Moroccan dirhams [environ 900 euros] for my plane ticket and it was canceled without any explanation. I just received an email and that was it. I’ve been trying to call support since this morning but no response. I lost hope and went home. »

Suspicions of corruption

Like Mohammed, hundreds of supporters were thus forced to remain on the ground. The seven canceled flights impact “2,100 passengers. The other 23 flights operated by RAM are still being maintained,” a source familiar with the matter told AFP. Contacted by 20 minutes, Royal Air Maroc did not answer our questions. Many Moroccan supporters also accuse the company of not having done everything to market the plane tickets via the normal sales circuit, but of prioritizing certain people.

Other culprits of this chaotic situation, according to Atlas Lions fans, some close to the Moroccan delegation in Doha. “When we arrived in Qatar, we learned that it was controversial figures who were responsible for distributing the places, explains Laila. The tickets exist, but they are distributed at their convenience. »

“More than 1,000 euros the place on the black market”

On social networks, we can notably see the son Mohamed Boudrika, former president of Raja Casablanca, member of the FRMF steering committee responsible for distributing tickets in Doha, with many sesames for the semi-final of the World Cup. “We just wanted to be part of the story and experience the magic, laments Laila. If we didn’t have the assurance of having a free ticket, we wouldn’t have made the trip. I would have liked them to let us live this historic moment in peace. »

For her, as well as her sister and brother, the last solution to attend the semi-final remains to find tickets on the black market. But, again, it looks like an impossible mission. “Tickets, in category 3, are at 1,000 euros minimum… If we can’t find anything, we’ll go see the match at the fan zone, and then we’ll return to Casablanca at 5 am. “If Morocco does not go to the final, the night is likely to be very long.

* The first name has been changed

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