Morocco’s league reform plans face legal questions after clubs split

Morocco’s proposal to scrap relegation and increase the number of clubs in the top flight has been thrown into uncertainty after a meeting revealed divisions among the country’s professional teams.

Representatives of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) and the National Professional Football League (LNFP) met club presidents to discuss the proposed changes. The plan received the backing of a majority of those involved, but several clubs opposed it while others chose not to vote in favour.

According to Moroccan website Albotola, 17 clubs voted to support the proposal to abolish relegation and expand the Moroccan top division. Seven clubs did not support the plan, either by rejecting it or abstaining.

The positions of those clubs were not uniform. Some expressed their opposition directly, while others declined to endorse the proposal. Reports from the meeting also suggested there were differing accounts of the precise stance taken by some clubs.

Raja Club Athletic, Fath Union Sport, Union Touarga Sportif, Club Omnisports de Meknes, Chabab Soualem and Wydad Fes were reported to have rejected the proposal.

AS FAR, Wydad AC and Maghreb de Fes, meanwhile, were reported to have abstained.

The reported figures and the subsequent breakdown of club positions have added to the uncertainty surrounding the vote. The disagreement leaves the planned restructuring of the Moroccan league facing a significant procedural challenge, particularly if the new format is intended to come into force from next season.

One of the central issues is whether the clubs affected by the decision have given the necessary approval and whether any change would comply with the laws and regulations governing domestic competitions.

That question could be especially important if the expansion were introduced as an exceptional measure outside the usual process. Existing regulations and formal procedures may need to be followed before the proposal can be implemented.

Albotola said the presence of clubs opposed to the plan could make it difficult to pass the proposal in its current form. The report added that the challenge would be greater if the authorities attempted to introduce the change without completing the procedures required by the competition rules.

The FRMF’s executive board now faces a complicated issue after the proposal had been expected to attract broader support from clubs in the Moroccan top flight.

The debate has also extended beyond sporting considerations. Information circulating after the meeting indicated that organisational concerns and calculations linked to the wider football landscape and forthcoming commitments had become part of the discussion.

Those factors could make it harder for the relevant authorities and clubs to reach a compromise over the structure of the competition for next season.

The future of the proposal therefore depends on whether the parties can overcome the objections raised and establish an agreement that complies with the legal and regulatory framework governing Moroccan football.