Nasser Bourita reçoit le président du Parlement andin qui a exprimé son appui à l'intégrité territoriale du Maroc    AP-UpM: Rachid Talbi El Alami plaide pour un partenariat équilibré entre le Maroc et l'Europe    Donald Trump dévoile les détails de son offensive tarifaire    Dialogue social : l'OIT salue l'adoption du texte de loi sur la grève au Maroc    Le FMI accorde une nouvelle ligne de crédit flexible de 4,5 milliards de dollars au Maroc    Aid Al-Adha : Coût de la subvention à l'importation d'ovins en 2023-2024 atteint 437 millions de dirhams    Benali préside une réunion de haut niveau de suivi du projet d'interconnexion électrique entre le Maroc et la France    Transformation numérique du secteur des assurances : l'ACAPS lance le programme « Emergence »    Conjoncture : la croissance de moins en moins sensible aux activités agricoles    La récolte de blé du Maroc en 2025 en dessous de la moyenne malgré les fortes pluies de mars    Tarifs douaniers de Trump: Quel impact pour les exportations marocaines?    Descifrando el pasado genético del norte de África    Oujda abrite le congrès de l'autisme Afrique 2025    Températures prévues pour le vendredi 04 avril 2025    Lancement d'une nouvelle version du portail national Maroc.ma dotée d'une interface remaniée    Nouveaux droits de douane américains : 10 % pour le Maroc, le Golfe et l'Egypte... et 30 % pour l'Algérie    Pétrole. L'Ouganda sur le point de lancer sa 1ère raffinerie    Togo. Barry Moussa Barqué élu président du Sénat    Guinée. Le référendum constitutionnel fixé au 21 septembre    Classement FIFA: le Maroc fait un bond de deux places    Le Botswana, premier pays africain à accueillir les relais mondiaux d'athlétisme    Les Lionnes de l'Atlas s'entraînent avant les matchs contre la Tunisie et le Cameroun    La RFEF fait appel aux clubs pour freiner l'exode des talents vers le Maroc    Fraude fiscale : quatre ans et neuf mois de prison requis contre Carlo Ancelotti    À Rabat, un sommet international les 9-10 avril pour affermir la position du football africain sur l'échiquier mondial    Coupe du monde féminine 2035 : le Royaume-Uni seul en lice, le projet défendu par l'Espagne et qui inclut le Maroc écarté    Sahara : Staffan de Mistura poursuit sa tournée régionale avec une escale en Mauritanie    TV Abraham. Comment façonner le paysage géopolitique et économique de demain.    Une subvention de 437 millions de dirhams pour l'importation d'ovins partie en fumée, sans effet notable sur les prix    Un accord de coopération entre l'Académie du Royaume du Maroc et l'Académie française de médecine    L'Espagne aurait réduit la présence de son renseignement au Maroc dans un contexte de rapprochement diplomatique    Le Statut de l'artiste : Désormais une réalité pour le Burkina Faso    La Côte d'Ivoire fait son cinéma au Maroc    France. Le célèbre animateur Arthur champion de la lutte contre l'antisémitisme    Understanding the United States' new tariff rate policies    Les prévisions du jeudi 3 avril    Comment sont fixés les nouveaux tarifs douaniers par les Etats-Unis ?    Libye : Un ADN ancien de 7000 ans révèle une lignée de l'Afrique du Nord    CAN U17/ Aujourd'hui, Maroc-Zambie : Horaire? Chaînes?    Lutte antiacridienne : Faut-il craindre une invasion de criquets au Maroc ? [INTEGRAL]    Trump annonce de nouveaux tarifs douaniers : Maroc (10%), Algérie (30%), Tunisie (28%)    Cema Bois de l'Atlas : 150 MDH pour renforcer la compétitivité    Presidente del Parlamento Andino respalda soberanía marroquí en Rabat    L'Algérie, parrain d'un Sahel instable, entre soutien au terrorisme et quête de puissance régionale    Ghita Triki : "Résonance chromatique s'inscrit dans les programmes de visibilisation des cultures du Maroc et d'Afrique"    Akdital: Feu vert du Conseil de la concurrence pour l'acquisition de deux établissements de santé à Laâyoune    Festival Mawazine: Will Smith et Kid Cudi en têtes d'affiche    La Dolce Vita à Mogador : Le Cinéma Italien à l'honneur à Essaouira du 23 au 26 Avril 2025    







Merci d'avoir signalé!
Cette image sera automatiquement bloquée après qu'elle soit signalée par plusieurs personnes.



Did FIFA alter Morocco's map to exclude Western Sahara ?
Publié dans Yabiladi le 06 - 12 - 2024

A Spanish media outlet recently reported that FIFA altered Morocco's map to exclude Western Sahara. This claim was eagerly echoed by both Algerian public and private media. However, when examining the official documents of FIFA this interpretation begins to fall apart.
What's gotten into the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA)? That's the question that irked a journalist from El Independiente following the joint Spain-Portugal-Morocco bid for the 2030 World Cup, prompting him to write an article about the different versions of Morocco's map featured in FIFA documents. His criticism is particularly directed at the Spanish Football Federation for allowing Morocco to publish a map that includes Western Sahara in the joint bid dossier.
After digging through FIFA's evaluation reports for the 2026 and 2030 World Cup bids, Francisco Carrion concluded that FIFA thwarted the «maneuver» by the Moroccan Federation, aided by the Spanish Federation.
«The evaluation report for the bid, signed by FIFA, headquartered in Switzerland, avoided reproducing the map of Morocco distributed by the Alaouite monarchy and adhered to the internationally recognized map, with borders defined in the south by Western Sahara».
El Independiente
This newspaper is also known for its frequent attacks and critiques targeting the Spanish Football Federation, adopting an equally harsh tone towards Morocco. For instance, El Independiente previously criticized Morocco's wish to host the World Cup final, pointing to the «dictatorial nature» of the Kingdom. For Francisco Carrion, FIFA has thus done «cartographic justice» for Western Sahara, just as it did during Morocco's solo bid for the 2026 World Cup.
Algerian media on the offensive
This critique quickly became a hot topic in Algerian media. The website of the public news channel Al24news published an article claiming that «FIFA rejects the map presented by Morocco, which includes the territory of Western Sahara, frustrating the illegitimate aspirations of the Makhzen». The outlet speculated that FIFA views the map submitted by Morocco as «contradicting international legitimacy and United Nations resolutions». However, this claim is not based on any source within FIFA or any official statement.
With a triumphant tone, Al24 further stated that «the technical report published by FIFA last week completely shattered Rabat's aspirations» because «FIFA refused to adopt the Moroccan map submitted by the Moroccan regime (Makhzen) and adhered to the internationally recognized map, which separates Morocco from Western Sahara».
The same tone was adopted by Algerian newspaper Fennec Football, which titled its article : «FIFA slaps Morocco and puts it in its place!» (sic). Blending football and geopolitics, the news website explained that the bid to host the 2030 World Cup had encountered a «major geopolitical obstacle». It claimed that FIFA «recently altered the map submitted by Morocco, which included Western Sahara as part of its territory, dealing a major blow to the Alaouite regime».
The verdict from Fennec Football was unequivocal: «This decision is a clear reminder of order, consistent with FIFA's position in 2018 during Morocco's solo bid for the 2026 World Cup».
Let the maps speak
Analyzing the various maps in FIFA reports reveals that, in Morocco's 2026 World Cup bid document, the country is depicted without Western Sahara on page 9. However, this separation disappears on page 16 of the same official FIFA document from... 2018. A draw. Back to the starting point.
What about the latest evaluation report for the 2030 World Cup bid, published just a week ago? The map of Morocco, including Western Sahara, is visible in red on pages 18, 26, and 92. Occasionally, a legend obscures part of Western Sahara, or a zoom-in excludes the southernmost part of the territory. However, it is evident that no map adheres to the 27°40' north parallel, which marked the border between «Spanish Sahara» and the rest of Morocco. Cities like Laayoune, Mahbes, and Smara can be identified in the red-shaded region.
A peculiar own goal?
Did FIFA attempt to balance the interests of various parties by cleverly manipulating the depiction of Morocco's map? That's one possibility. But page 53 of the report offers conclusive evidence of FIFA's intention to include the entire Moroccan territory: «Located at the northwestern edge of Africa, with two coastal fronts spanning 3,500km along the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean», it reads—spanning from Saïdia to Tangier and down to Lagouira.
It is more plausible to attribute this representation to a graphic designer tasked with framing three countries, focusing on the cities hosting the 2030 World Cup matches, all located in northern Morocco.
This approach isn't new. During the evaluation of the joint Canada-United States-Mexico bid for the 2026 World Cup, FIFA published a map of the United States that only partially included Alaska—a non-contested but remote region not hosting any matches for the 2026 World Cup. Similarly, the far north of Canada was excluded.
Diplomacy through maps
So, what's the verdict on the maps? It's fair to call this a storm in a teacup! Drawing conclusions (positive or negative) about a territorial dispute that has been on the United Nations' agenda since 1963, based on biased interpretations of a map in a FIFA report, is as trivial as playing marbles to settle the outcome of a war. Whether the map of Morocco in the FIFA report includes or excludes Western Sahara has no bearing on the resolution of the dispute at the UN.
For football fans, there's only one key takeaway: the outcome of this global football report will be decided on Wednesday, December 11, 2024, during FIFA's extraordinary conference held via videoconference.


Cliquez ici pour lire l'article depuis sa source.