Raja Casablanca’s Algerian player Yousri Bouzok has reportedly refused to take part in tonight’s CAF Champions League match against AS FAR due to his team’s jersey, which features Morocco’s full map including its southern provinces in Western Sahara.

Le 360 quoted “sources close to the club” as saying that Bouzok, a key player for the team, expressed concerns about possible repercussions from Algerian authorities upon his return home. This has led him to request to be excluded from the game, added the report.

The game is taking place today at 8 p.m. local time at the Stade El Arbi Zaouli in Casablanca. Raja Casablanca has yet to release the official squad list for the match.  

This incident is part of a broader pattern of controversies surrounding the inclusion of Morocco’s full map on club jerseys.

Earlier this year, a similar controversy emerged with RS Berkane’s jersey.  The incident occurred when Algeria denied entry to the team’s delegation after landing at the Houari Boumediene Airport for a game against USMA Alger.

Algerian security confiscated the team’s equipment, including the jerseys, and left them stranded at the airport for hours. The delegation ended up returning to Morocco after Algerian authorities refused to return their equipment for the game to take place. As a result, the first leg of the CAF Confederation Cup semi-final was cancelled.

The second leg of the match, which was set to take place in Morocco, was also cancelled after USMA Alger players refused to participate in the game.

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) affirmed the legitimacy of RS Berkane’s jersey and fined USMA $40,000 for refusing to participate in the two games.

-Morocco World News

On the first match day of the CAF Champions League Group Stages kicked-off with an unexpected twist, as Young Africans SC were stunned 2-0 by Al Hilal on Tuesday, 26 November at Dar es Salaam’s Benjamin Mkapa Stadium. 

Two second-half goals by Adama Coulibaly and late strike by Yasser Muzammil saw the Tanzanian champions start off their continental campaign on the back foot, as Hilal moved top of Group A. 

A highly vocal Benjamin Mkwapa arena rallied the Tanzanian champions, who pinned their opponents into their own half from the onset, with the lively Aziz Ki orchestrating play for the Tanzanian champions. 

Despite having most of the possession, Al Hilal kept their opposition at bay to come back a more improved side in the second stanza. 

Coming off the break, the hosts continued sending numbers forward but left the backdoor open, as long ball by the keeper found an alert Adama Coulibaly, who showed composure in seeing off his marker before calmly slotting the ball in between the keeper’s legs. 

The hosts immediately went in search of the leveller but were again kept at bay by the Al Hilal defence. 

The final nail in the coffin was hammered by Yasser Muzammil with a similar goal to Coulibaly, as he connected well with a long-threaded ball to run at the keeper for a near post finish to seal the victory. 

Meanwhile in another Group A fixture, TP Mazembe’s TotalEnergies CAF Champions League title hopes did not get off to the best start after being held to a goalless draw by Algeria’s MC Alger. 

-CAF

The CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup remain the pinnacle of club football on the African continent and a chance for players and coaches to write their names into the history books by lifting the coveted trophies.

The Group Stage of the CAF Champions League starts for the 16 remaining teams with match day 1 on 26 November and includes some fascinating ties, not least a Moroccan Derby between Raja Casablanca and FAR Rabat in Group B.

Many of the most memorable moments in African football have come from the two elite competitions and another great chapter in the story of the game on the continent is set to be written this season.

Maniema Union from the Democratic Republic of Congo make their debut at this stage of the competition and with a tough away trip to Pretoria to face Mamelodi Sundowns in the other match in the pool.

Defending champions, Egyptian giants Al Ahly open their Group C campaign with a home clash against Stade d’Abidjan of Cote d’Ivoire, while Soweto side Orlando Pirates, playing in the pool stages for the first time since the 2018/19 season, are in Algeria at CR Belouizdad.

It will be a two-month sprint for the top two places in each of the four groups to earn a berth in the quarter-finals, with the pool stage to conclude with match day 6 on 17-19 January, 2025.

Record 12-time winners Al Ahly have lifted the CAF Champions League trophy in four of the previous five years and will be among the favourites again with their experience through the knockout rounds.

The group stage of the CAF Confederation Cup starts on 27 November and again there are some top ties to look forward to.

Holders Zamalek welcome debutants Black Bulls from Mozambique in a tough introduction for the latter, while there is also a North African showdown between CS Sfaxien from Tunisia and Algeria’s CS Constantine.

Morocco’s RS Berkane, the runners-up in 2023/24, start their pool stage campaign against another club making their debut at this stage, Angola’s CD da Lunda Sul

The quarter-finals in this season’s interclub competitions are scheduled for 28-30 March (first leg) and 4-6 April (second leg), while the semi-finals will be played 18-20 April (first leg) and 25-27 April (second leg).

View the full  CAF Champions League Group Stage fixture list here.

View the full  CAF Confederation Cup Group Stage fixture list here.

CAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE GROUP STAGE MATCH DAYS

• Match day 1: 26 November, 2024
• Match day 2: 6-8 December, 2024
• Match day 3: 13-15 December, 2024
• Match day 4: 3-5 January, 2025
• Match day 5: 10-12 January, 2025
• Match day 6: 17-19 January, 2025

CAF CONFEDERATION CUP GROUP STAGE MATCH DAYS

• Match day 1: 27 November, 2024
• Match day 2: 8 December, 2024
• Match day 3: 15 December, 2024
• Match day 4: 5 January, 2025
• Match day 5: 12 January, 2025
• Match day 6: 19 January, 2025