The Mohammed VI Football Complex which was inaugurated in 2019 has become the talk of the town on the continent. A visit to the facility will explain why it is so.
The Complex is part of the national program on upgrading football infrastructures. I had the rare privilege of an exclusive tour of the facility by one of the Managers of the Complex, Mohammed Badkhi and later climaxed by the Director of the Complex, Hassan Kharbouch.
“I did not imagine that in Africa we have a training center with such international specifications, it is really amazing! Honestly, I played in the biggest clubs in Europe but I did not see anything like this.”- 2022 African Player of the Year, Sadio Mane after training in Mohammed VI Football Complex.
You will understand why the Bayern Munich and Senegalese player said that after a visit. From the entrance, your breath would be taken away just by looking at the whole Complex and how beautiful it looks. For a second, I questioned myself if indeed I was still in Africa.
The complex accommodates the country’s national teams during their preparation for tournaments and as well as foreign teams who wish to conduct their preparations in Morocco.
The Complex can accommodate the national team A (66 rooms and 4 suites), can house the U23 and U17 teams with a 150-bed capacity and an 80 bed-capacity respectively and goalkeepers with 54 rooms.
It also has dining and relaxation areas, a 221-seat auditorium that can host various events (conferences, film screening), and administrative buildings.
The ultra-modern complex, one of the largest in the world has been equipped with state-of-the-art facilities and equipment, in line with FIFA standards. It has four natural grass football fields, three artificial turf football fields, a covered football pitch, a hybrid football field, a re-training room that can host futsal matches, an outdoor Olympic-sized pool, two tennis courts, and a Beach Soccer field.
Other facilities include a new generation sports and performance medicine centre which meets the FIFA standards in the field with the inclusion of physiotherapy, stress testing, dentistry, ophthalmology, trauma, psychology, podiatry, nutritional medicine, radiology, ultrasound, electrotherapy, bone densitometry, cryotherapy, and an emergency mobile medical unit.
It is up part of the national program on the upgrading of football infrastructure. The program provides for improving players’ training through the establishment of training centres for local teams (RCA, FUS, MAT, WAC, RSB), and the construction of five federal training centres in Saïdia, Ifrane, Ksar Lakbir, Beni Mellal and Agadir.
Under the program, which also provides for developing football practice, 138 artificial grass football pitches have been renovated and 13 natural grass pitches have been set up.
By: Ayishatu Zakaria Ali
