South African referee Abongile Tom has been appointed to officiate Morocco’s first outing since their World Cup success, taking charge of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Gabon in Rabat later this month.
Cape Town-based Tom will be assisted by veteran linesman Zahele Siwela as well as the Angolan linesman Jerson dos Santos.
Tom and Siwela were on the refereeing panel at this year’s World Cup, although on a reserve list and therefore did not work at any games except for fourth official duty.
Morocco, who were the best African performers and reached the quarterfinals at the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States, are competing in group A of the qualifying competition, with the top two finishers in the group advancing to next June’s finals, to be co-hosted in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
The match at the Prince Moulay Abdallah Stadium is on Friday, 25 September.
South Africa’s opening group D game against Guinea on Saturday, 26 September is to be refereed by Nigeria’s Sadou Ali Brahamou, with Abdoul Aziz Yacouba, also from Niger, and Ghana’s Theophilus Akugre on the line.