Morocco to play Brazil in a friendly game
The Moroccan football federation announced on Wednesday that the World Cup semi-finalists, Morocco, will host a homecoming game against Brazil in a friendly match next month. This will be the first opportunity for home fans to watch their team play since their unexpected success in the World Cup semi-finals in Qatar. The match will take place on March 25 at the Ibn Batouta Stadium in Tangier, followed by a second friendly against Peru in Madrid three days later.
Morocco was scheduled to participate in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers during the next international window, but their opponents, Zimbabwe, were disqualified due to a FIFA ban. As a result, Morocco was able to arrange these high-profile friendlies.
During their remarkable run at the World Cup, Morocco qualified from a tough group against the odds with Croatia and Belgium. Then eliminated both Portugal and Spain, finishing in fourth place. On the other hand, Brazil was eliminated by Croatia in the quarter-finals after a penalty shootout. This will be the third time the two teams face each other, with Brazil having won the previous two matches: a 2-0 victory in Belem in a 1997 friendly, and a 3-0 win at the 1998 World Cup finals in France.
The Ibn Batouta Stadium in Tangier recently hosted matches in the Club World Cup, which took place last week.