By Akram Medhat
The match between Egypt's Al Ahly and Morocco's Wydad was not just a sporting event; it is also indirectly boosting tourism between Egypt and Morocco, as Egyptian travel companies prepared special programs for Moroccan fans for the first-leg match, held yesterday at Borg El Arab Stadium in Alexandria, as well as for the return leg in the city of Casablanca, "Dar El Beida," in Morocco.
In this context, Tamer Shawky, general manager of Right Tours, said that as soon as Al Ahly beat Tunisia's Etoile du Sahel and qualified for the CAF Champions League final to face Morocco's Wydad, tour programs were prepared and promoted in Morocco to attract fans from there and to use the mass sporting event to boost tourism from this important market.
Shawky told Travel Yalla News that the company organized a tour program for about 100 Moroccan tourists, who arrived at Cairo Airport last Thursday on an EgyptAir flight from Rabat, and is currently promoting trips for Egyptian fans to Dar El Beida, "Casablanca," that include attending the return match between Al Ahly and Morocco's Wydad.
He added that the program lasts 4 days/3 nights and includes visits to the Pyramids, the Egyptian Museum and Khan El-Khalili, transfers from Cairo to Borg El Arab Stadium, and attending the match free of charge without tickets, as there is an agreement allowing them in with their passports without tickets, and Egyptian fans will receive reciprocal treatment at the return match in Morocco.
Shawky stressed that what tourism officials announced about making it easier for visitors from the Maghreb countries to obtain visas is not applied on the ground, as it requires prior security approval, which prevented more than 100 additional people from attending the match, and this procedure takes about a week. He noted that obtaining a visa from the Egyptian Embassy in Rabat takes 14 days, which is a long time, pointing out that its cost of 40 euros is no obstacle for Moroccan tourists, but the waiting period is long even though they travel in groups organized by a travel company.
He called for increasing flights from Morocco to Egypt, as the number of flights is small and relies on scheduled flights by EgyptAir and Royal Air Maroc between Cairo and Rabat.
For her part, Zakia Sahmawi, head of the Moroccan Community Association in Cairo, told Travel Yalla News that Morocco's Wydad has a large fan base, so hundreds of fans were keen to come to Egypt, which opens the door to tourism. Hundreds of Moroccan families living in Cairo also made a point of attending the match at Borg El Arab Stadium in Alexandria, or watching it on satellite channels at large gatherings in Cairo's main districts.
