In order to get soccer supporters from Casablanca to Doha in time for Morocco’s World Cup semifinal match against France on Wednesday, Royal Air Maroc of Morocco will run 30 special flights, the company announced on Monday.
It stated that the flights would take off on Tuesday and Wednesday. The nation has made history by being the first in Africa to ever qualify for the World Cup semifinals, much to the satisfaction of Moroccans and not only soccer enthusiasts.
Thousands of Moroccans are already traveling to Doha for the soccer competition, and those who take advantage of the reduced roundtrip fares will increase that number.
Morocco defeated Portugal on Saturday to advance to the semifinals for the first time in African and Arab history.
After the game’s final whistle, fans who had crowded Rabat cafes flocked to the streets. A celebration fit for a World Cup final began with cheers, horns, and fireworks and quickly extended throughout the Moroccan capital.
Portugal, with their famous player Cristiano Ronaldo, is the latest major European country that Morocco has shockingly eliminated from the Cup. Morocco, who had never before been a contender for soccer’s top prize, has eliminated teams like Belgium, Spain, and now Portugal without surrendering a single goal, and is now just one match away from advancing to the championship game.
Only 12 of Morocco’s 26 players were born in the country, the lowest percentage in the competition, according to a FIFA count. The others are of Moroccan descent but were born in Belgium, the Netherlands, Canada, Spain, and Canada.