In this issue, star reporter John Bennett traveled to Rabat “to find out the secrets behind Morocco’s success” in football.
In particular, he visited the Mohammed VI Football Complex, which played a major role in the Atlas Lions’ performance as the first African and Arab team to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup.
It is a state-of-the-art infrastructure, which extends over several hectares, with football fields as far as the eye can see, an Olympic swimming pool, hotels, numerous amenities, amphitheaters, training rooms and a football academy, explained the British media, noting that it is practically a small town where the men’s and women’s teams settle during the international events to prepare their games.
The Atlas Lions spent 16 days there before heading to Qatar, the BBC said, noting that the facility is also dedicated to developing of women’s football in Morocco, as well as strengthening the technical learning for many Moroccan and African coaches.
In this journey behind the scenes of national football, John Bennett met with many personalities, including Omar Khyari, head of communications at the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), who explained that the complex is the result of the strategy initiated by His Majesty King Mohammed VI in 2008.
For its part, the Mohammed VI Academy is dedicated to young talent, male and female, to train and qualify them, said Khyari.
