Champions League: CAF 'cannot tolerate' incidents in Tunisia and Morocco

Police intervened in Casablanca to restore order in the stands after fights between supporters, on April 29, 2023. AFP - FADEL SENNA

Text by: Farid Achache Follow

3 min

The Confederation of African Football strongly condemned on Monday, May 1, the unruly behavior of some fans during two CAF Champions League matches in Tunisia and Morocco, Saturday, April 29. These include the Espérance Sportive de Tunis-JS Kabylie in Tunis and Raja AC-Al-Ahly in Casablanca.

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CAF Secretary General Veron Mosengo-Omba reacted strongly after this weekend's incidents and announced an investigation and appropriate measures after the problems that took place in Tunis and Casablanca. "We can't tolerate that in football. We condemn in the strongest terms the unruly actions of some supporters. CAF will entrust the case to its judicial structures for further investigation," he said in a statement.

A supporter of the Raja Casablanca team died

On Saturday night, near the Mohammed V sports complex in Casablanca, several groups of Raja supporters could not access the stadium "although they had tickets". Witnesses spoke of "clashes between fans and the police at the time of the opening of the stadium gates". Videos published by local media show scores of fans trying to enter an already full stadium, before police intervened to remove them.

A 29-year-old supporter of the Raja Casablanca team died while she was in the vicinity of the complex, according to the Casablanca prefecture. According to an official source, the young woman was the victim of "discomfort" and died in hospital. A judicial inquiry has been opened to "determine the circumstances of the incident".

At the end of the match, a general brawl also broke out in a stand between rival gangs of Raja ultras. The police had to intervene in the stands to stop the clashes. Morocco, which has declared itself a candidate to host the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) in 2025, and also formalized last month its bid for the organization of the World Cup-2030 - with Spain and Portugal - regularly experiences violence between groups of fans.

Fire in an access corridor

Also on Saturday night, this time in Tunis, the quarter-final between Esperance de Tunis and Jeunesse Sportive de Kabylie was interrupted for about 30 minutes. In particular, a fire broke out in an access corridor. According to Radio Mosaïque and other testimonies, Esperance fans tried to enter the pitch after the first half, but police intervened and clashes broke out.

Fans overturned garbage cans on the sides of the Rades Olympic Stadium and caused a fire in an access corridor; Clashes pitted them against riot police, according to these testimonies.

An AFP photographer saw scenes of ransacking in the stands and tear gas canisters that blanketed the stadium with thick smoke. Several police officers were injured by projectile jets, according to this photographer.

Shortly after 21:45 (20:45 GMT), the match was finally able to resume in front of practically empty stands on the side of Esperance. The club scored almost immediately a first goal before JSK equalized, but failed to qualify after losing the first leg in Algiers (0-1).

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  • Football
  • Tunisia
  • Morocco