Morocco fans travel far to see opener against Brazil

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At Morocco’s opener against Brazil, it became clear that following your team at this tournament is reserved for the wealthiest in many countries They had come from the United Kingdom and from Dubai. A surprising number had come down from Montreal. They had come from Morocco, of course, from Marrakech and Casablanca, to witness their team take on mighty Brazil. To support Morocco, the administrative, off-again-on-again champions of Africa, and the semi-finalists at the last World Cup in Qatar. “We had a good World Cup in 2022 and a good African Cup of Nations,” Kamal Ait El Hadj said before the game, lounging in his seat in the New York New Jersey Stadium’s lower bowl. Soon enough, his section would be colored by Morocco’s blood red and splotches of green. “It was a minimum for me to be here.” Leander Schaerlaeckens is the author of The Long Game: U.S. Men’s Soccer and Its Savage, Four-Decade Journey to the Top, or Thereabouts, which is out now. He teaches at Marist University. Continue reading...