By Hamza Mekouar – From Casablanca to Algiers via Tunis, the chants belted out across football stadiums echo young North African fans’ frustrations not connected to the highs and lows of the beautiful game. The song of the club’s “Ultras Eagles” has notched up close to nine million hits on YouTube. “Free and unbowed,” composed by ultras of rival club Wydad, denounces Morocco’s high youth unemployment and constant privatisation of public services. Algerian football stadiums have since the late 1970s provided an outlet, sometimes a violent one, for young people who feel robbed of a future. In Morocco, after supporters failed to inform police of fan displays, Raja supporters said “massive arrests” were carried out last December.

Source: The North Africa Journal February 04, 2020 15:45 UTC