by sports reporter
RABAT – Football has resumed in Morocco, with the country’s top flight league the Botola Pro picking up from where it left off last Monday (27 July) as the Moroccan Royal Football Federation sought to have teams lagging behind play catch up.
The Coronavirus pandemic forced the Moroccan Royal Football Federation to suspend all football activities on 16 March, with nine rounds to go although there were outstanding matches which became first priority when the league resumed.
All postponed games are to be completed first before the full official return of the 21st leg of the Botola Pro on the 10 August.
The increased number of Moroccan clubs’ playing in the different continental and regional competitions this year presented a nightmare in match scheduling hence the huge number of outstanding games.
Six of the outstanding matches of this season’s “Botola Pro”, have been played with Raja Casablanca collecting seven points out of a possible nine, a feat that saw them move to second place (35), two points behind leaders Wydad Casablanca (37) with a game in hand.
Raja played a nil all draw against Difaa El Jadidi before winning 3-1 against CR Khemmis Zemamra and also beat Youssoufia 2-1.
The FRMF has ensured that all football matches at the national level are being held under the best possible conditions to prevent the spread of the virus with games being held behind closed doors and televised.
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Preventive and health measures are being made available by the FRMF and its medical staff, and clubs are required to adhere and comply with them, to make sure the return of football in Morocco is smooth and does not contribute to the spread of the coronavirus.
Only the SNRT, Morocco’s national broadcaster, was given the right to cover the Botola Pro matches after the resumption, through the TV channel, Arriyadia, which holds broadcasting rights, while a media informative guide is being made available to journalists through the FRMF website.
The lockdown gave the association an opportunity to attend to stadiums with improvements being made to most of the facilities with regards to the quality of the pitch in the different stadiums, while lighting was upgraded to LED.
The Botola Pro second division has also resumed its games. – Online
