Broos Laments Missing AFCON Atmosphere In Morocco

• South Africa coach Hugo Broos says the tournament feel is missing in Morocco
• He points to empty stands, rain, and matchday access issues across venues
• South Africa enter Monday still chasing a last 16 place

Hugo Broos has coached deep into Africa Cup of Nations campaigns, so he knows the rhythm of it, the noise, the sense that a whole country is leaning into every match.

In Morocco, the South Africa coach says that feeling has not arrived.

Broos, who won the tournament with Cameroon in 2017 in Gabon and guided South Africa to third place at the 2023 edition in Ivory Coast, spoke in Marrakech ahead of South Africa’s final Group B match against Zimbabwe on Monday. South Africa opened with a 2 – 1 win over Angola in Marrakech, then lost 1 – 0 to Egypt in Agadir.

“In the Ivory Coast and in Gabon, every second of the tournament you felt that you were in a tournament,” Broos said. “The people were — when we went with the bus to train — the people were waving and they were with flags, and here you see nothing. So, I don’t know, but yeah, there is no vibe, there is no typical AFCON vibe. I don’t feel it here.”

Group B is still alive behind Egypt. Egypt have six points from two matches and are already through. South Africa sit on three points, with Angola and Zimbabwe on one point each. Angola play Egypt on Monday, and South Africa meet Zimbabwe. The top two in each group advance, along with the best third place finishers.

Away from the pitch, organisers have faced questions over attendance and stadium access. Heavy rainfall has hit much of the tournament, with one clear day noted on Thursday, when there were no games on the Christian holiday of Christmas Day. Morocco is a predominantly Muslim country.

The schedule has been part of the conversation too. The tournament was first planned for the summer, then shifted into winter to avoid a clash with FIFA’s expanded Club World Cup in the United States.

Even Morocco’s matches have drawn attention. Games were reported as sold out, yet sections of the near 70,000 capacity Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium still showed empty seats. Ticket touts have been blamed for snapping up seats, leaving many supporters frustrated at the gates.

Some venues have tried to boost numbers by allowing supporters free entry after kickoff. That approach has created a different problem, with groups waiting outside without tickets, expecting entry once the match is under way.

Broos said South Africa have felt that chaos first hand. He returned to the empty seats at the South Africa Angola match, then criticised the arrangements around his side’s next game against Egypt.

“Nobody came to see the game South Africa-Angola,” Broos said after criticizing the arrangements for his team’s subsequent match against Egypt. “It was chaos before the game.

“They blocked everyone, even people with tickets. They couldn’t enter in the stadium because there was a crowd of people who didn’t have a ticket and who were allowed to come in.”

Broos said the venues themselves are not the issue. Morocco has nine stadiums in use, each newly built or renovated for the tournament, yet he feels the stands have not matched the infrastructure.

Broos praised the “nice stadiums” — all nine were newly constructed or renovated for the tournament — but said the atmosphere at the 2025 Africa Cup was uncharacteristically “cool.”

“If they don’t let the people free in the stadium, there is nobody,” he said. “Nobody is coming to watch the game South Africa-Zimbabwe.”

Morocco is also set to co host the 2030 World Cup, which adds extra attention to how major events land with supporters, not just how they look on television.

WRITTEN BY

Jarrod

Jarrod Partridge is the Founder of Futbol Chronicle and an accredited journalist with over 30 years of experience following international football. A member of the AIPS International Sports Press Association, Jarrod has covered matches at stadiums around the world, bringing first-hand insight to every match report, player profile, and tactical analysis he writes.

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