This is one of the images from the start of the African Cup of Nations. Since Sunday and the opening ceremony in Rabat, torrential rains have fallen on Morocco and chilled the players and supporters during the matches. Despite the deluge in Rabat, during the opening match (Morocco-Comoros, Sunday) and Tuesday during Tunisia’s match against Uganda, the pitch remained perfectly passable.
Better yet, no puddles were seen, the ball rolled normally, as if a bright sun was shining above the stadium. The result of a lot of work dedicated to the pitch of the Prince Moulay Abdellah stadium in Rabat, inaugurated last September, including the installation of the SubAir system allowing rapid absorption of water. This cutting-edge technology allows you to act directly on the lawn by adjusting different parameters in real time such as aeration, drainage and thermal regulation.
Last June, the opening match venue became the first stadium in North Africa to be equipped with this system. And the result is stunning, as shown by the start of this CAN 2025. Although we do not know if the other stadiums in the tournament have the same advanced technological equipment, so far, no match has been interrupted due to bad weather.
“It allowed us to play our football”
Tunisia coach Sami Trabelsi was also positively surprised. Although the match against Uganda was held at the Olympic Stadium in Rabat, a much less modern venue than the Prince Moulay Abdellah stadium, the tactician said he was “impressed by Morocco’s infrastructure”. “Today, after three hours of heavy rain, the lawn remained in very good condition. Thanks to them, it allowed us to play our football,” he added.
A Tunisian football legend who notably played for Ajax Amsterdam, Hatem Trabelsi shared this opinion. “We must be proud of Morocco,” he said. The tournament is not easy with the torrential rain but no match has been interrupted by flooding. Well done to everyone who worked to complete this mission. »
While rain is still forecast in the coming days, no worries for the rest of the tournament. As hoped by Gianni Infantino, the president of Fifa, this CAN 2025 could well be “the greatest in history”.
