FOLLOWING an impressive showing at the 2022 World Cup, Morocco will be back in the global football spotlight this month as it hosts the 2022 Club World Cup.

The tournament is taking place in 2023 due to scheduling issues on the back of delaying the World Cup until later in the year, and the Moroccan FA were only announced as host in December while the tournament in Qatar was already under way.

Moroccan giants Wydad Casablanca will represent the host nation having also won the CAF Champions League in 2022.

As Wydad qualified as the host nation club, the runners-up in that final, Egyptian football powerhouse Al Ahly, will effectively take the free host spot, and opened the tournament with a 3-0 win against Oceania representatives Auckland City in the first round on Wednesday.

For Europe’s representatives, Uefa Champions League winners Real Madrid, the tournament can often be depicted as a distraction — annoying extra games in the middle of the season with added travel and added workload for players.

Having already seen their season interrupted for the World Cup, that narrative will be even more prominent for Real this season as they challenge Barcelona in La Liga while also looking to defend their Champions League crown.

The reality doesn’t always match the narrative, though, and many of the Real Madrid players will want to add a Club World Cup medal to their list of achievements in the game. It is, after all, another way to become a world champion.

Among clubs from other continents, the importance of this tournament is not in doubt. The South American side, in this case, Copa Libertadores champions Flamengo of Brazil, are usually viewed as the team with the best chance of causing an upset.

Winning the Copa Libertadores is a great achievement for South American teams but, alongside that, they view the chance to potentially test themselves against the best team from Europe in the Club World Cup as a big deal in itself.

From North America, a team from the United States will compete in this tournament for the first time.

Seattle Sounders defeated Pumas UNAM of Mexico in the Concacaf Champions League final last year, becoming the first MLS team to win that tournament in its current format.

When LA Galaxy won that tournament’s predecessor, the Concacaf Champions Cup, in 2000, the subsequent Club World Cup was cancelled, robbing the Los Angeles side of a chance to test themselves against Real Madrid.

Like Flamengo, and indeed the other teams including Asian representatives Al-Hilal, the Sounders see this as a great chance to assess where they stand in global football. 

Back in the US, it is seen not just as a test of the Sounders’ quality, but also of the quality of Major League Soccer as a whole.

It is the first time a team from the league, which played its first season in 1996, has competed on such a global scale.

“This is the first time for an MLS side, and for us, to be part of this,” Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei said ahead of today’s second round game against Al Ahly.

“For them, this is charted territory, so we know we have to give them the utmost respect.

“If we do find ourselves moving forward [to the next round], it’s an incredible opportunity.

“I’ve been fortunate to play against Real Madrid twice, both in friendlies, but they’re only friendlies.

“For an MLS team to have an opportunity to play against arguably the best team in the world for something meaningful is a privilege. It’s an honour.

“I think we sense that, and we want to win against Al Ahly so we can showcase our skill against such a huge opponent.”

Hosts Morocco gained admirers across the world of football last year as they topped a World Cup group containing Belgium, Croatia and Canada, before going on to defeat Spain and Portugal in the knockout rounds and finish fourth overall.

This club tournament, taking place in the cities of Tangier and Rabat, will see a continuation of the celebrations of Moroccan football, and African champions Wydad Casablanca being much more than just an obligatory host team will help.

Morocco’s 2022 World Cup squad contained three Wydad players: club captain Yahya Jabrane, goalkeeper Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti, and the impressive 27-year-old left-back Yahia Attiyat Allah.

Wydad head coach, Mahdi Nafti, believes that with the fans behind them, they can continue to show Moroccan football in a good light.

“Clearly, this is a dream for us,” he said. “We know that we are not the favourites and the challenge is great.

“We will not be worse than other teams even if we know that we are not favourites, but we know that we will play at home in front of our fans and this is great for us and a great motivation.

“We would like to continue the situation that followed the World Cup with the Moroccan national team.

“I know for sure that the rest of the teams will respect us, and this is a great challenge for us.

“It is very important that we have experienced stars in the team, and with our hearts and our fans we can move mountains.”

Wydad meet Al-Hilal, the side from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in today’s other second round game. The winner will go on to face Flamengo, one of the most supported teams in the world, in the semi-finals.

A Europe versus South America final will be expected but the hosts, plus the representatives from Asia and Africa have the potential to spring a surprise or two in Morocco, while Seattle are an unknown quantity at this level.

“There are going to be different styles clashing, and styles that haven't really faced each other before — teams really figuring each other out,” added Frei.

This unfamiliarity and the rarity of such fixtures is what can make intercontinental club football so interesting, and tournaments like the Club World Cup of value to the global game. Not just a European distraction.