Spanish daily La Razón has taken aim at what it describes as a “surreal wave” of accusations from Algerian media and politicians against Morocco, following Algeria’s elimination from AFCON 2025 by Nigeria.
The paper argues that these reactions reached the level of political hysteria, as some tried to export a sporting failure into a narrative of foreign plotting.
According to the report, Algerian TV channels rushed after the final whistle to blame Morocco, promoting talk of “secret deals” and alleged Moroccan dominance over CAF. Others went as far as accusing Senegalese referee Issa Sy of being part of a grand scheme to stop Algeria from reaching the semi-finals and potentially blocking Morocco’s path to the title.
La Razón says the “conspiracy fever” soon moved from TV studios to the highest levels of power, citing a post by Algeria’s communication minister hinting at “shameful practices” in African football and remarks by politician Mounir Boudina attacking Morocco’s hosting and alleging serious irregularities without evidence.
In stark contrast, key Algeria players and their coach openly accepted responsibility for the defeat.
Captain Riyad Mahrez admitted that the referee “was not perfect” but stressed the loss was decided on the pitch, while teammates like Ramiz Zerrouki and Rayan Ait Nouri acknowledged poor performance and Nigeria’s superiority, reinforcing the newspaper’s argument that numbers do not lie, with Nigeria enjoying 68% possession and Algeria failing to register a single shot on target.
