South Africa coach Hugo Broos has expressed strong reservations about the atmosphere and organization of the 2025 Afcon in Morocco, stating the competition lacks the usual energy and fan involvement seen in earlier tournaments.
Broos, known for his bluntness, confessed he’s not sensing the usual AFCON excitement from the host, despite participating in the tournament thrice.
“I don’t feel the same vibe compared to what I felt in the Gabon or the Ivory Coast,” Broos said.
“I can’t explain it, but the Ivory Coast and Gabon felt like tournaments. On the bus to the train, people waved flags, but it’s not like that here.”
“I don’t know, but there is no vibe, there is no typical Afcon vibe.”
The Belgian coach also criticized poor match attendance, especially during Bafana Bafana’s group stage games, and implied that ticket prices might be a factor.
“I am not feeling it here. We play the game, and we get everything we want. If they don’t let the people in free at the stadium, nobody is coming to watch the games,” he said.
“Nobody came to watch the game between South Africa and Zimbabwe, nobody came to watch our game against Angola.
In Ivory Coast, the first game was against Mali, but in Tunisia and Namibia, there were crowds in the stands.
“Local people were involved in the tournament, and I don’t feel that here.”
Broos also spoke out against the stadium access setup, recalling a disturbing experience involving his family.
“My family was at our game against Egypt, and it was chaos before the match started. The police did not allow some of the people to go into the stadium, even though they had tickets,” he said.
“People with tickets couldn’t enter the stadium because there were crowds of people who didn’t have tickets, and they were allowed to come in. My wife said she was afraid. The organisation on that one is not good.”
Even though Broos was frustrated, he still praised the team’s accommodation and training facilities in Morocco, recognizing the positives.
“We can’t be happy with what we have, you can see the hotel is fantastic here in Marrakesh. The one in Agadir was also good, even though I feel more comfortable here,” he said.
“Here in Marrakesh, we are good, the pitches are good, and there are no complaints from our side.”
