Morocco has selected nine stadiums in six cities for the Africa Cup of Nations finals starting in December, the country’s local organising committee said on Monday hours before the tournament draw was due to be held.
Four stadiums will be in the capital Rabat and officials said the final will be played at Complexe Sportif Prince Moulay Abdellah, which has a 69 500 capacity.
It will also host the opening match and a semifinal, along with the renovated stadium in Tangier.
Casablanca’s Mohammed V stadium was the venue for the final when Morocco last hosted the tournament in 1988 but it is earmarked for a quarterfinal only this time round, along with Agadir, Fes and Marrakech.
The 24-team tournament is being held from December 21-January 18, 2026.
Morocco are World Cup co-hosts in 2030, along with Spain and Portugal, and plan to build a 115 000-seater stadium on the outskirts of Casablanca by 2027, which they hope could host the 2030 final.
The stadium, one of the largest in the world, will cost up to $500 million, the Moroccan government previously said.
Stadiums in Rabat and Tangier are being renovated ahead of the Cup of Nations and Morocco plans after the tournament to upgrade the stadiums in Agadir, Fes and Marrakech, which are candidates to be World Cup host cities.