HIBAPRESS – Rabat
In recent days, news spread claiming the suspension of referees in the Moroccan league for life without any official announcement, a news item that sparked widespread controversy among sports followers on social media and various media outlets.
To ascertain the truth of the matter, HIBAPRESS contacted an official refereeing source, who completely denied the veracity of the news, confirming that the bodies in charge of managing the refereeing sector in Morocco have not issued any final decision to suspend referees for life, neither this season nor last season, and that what was circulated is merely a baseless rumor. HIBAPRESS obtained a list of the first elite referees who were summoned to the referees' camp at the beginning of the current season, and this list was compared with the list of last season, to identify any differences that might be the cause of the circulation of false news. It was revealed that last season's list included 33 referees (32 referees plus one female referee), while the current season's list was limited to only 26 referees, a difference that the refereeing source described as normal and does not mean the suspension of any referee, but rather relates to technical decisions related to the refereeing directorate within the framework of its evaluation system for the referees' performance at the end of each season, as well as the reaching of the legal age for retirement from refereeing by some. Regarding the seven referees who were not included in the current season's list, the source clarified that three of them were retired after exceeding the age of 45, namely Dakki Al-Raddad, Karim Sabri, and Samir Al-Kazaz, and one female referee decided to retire personally, namely Bouchra Karboubi. As for the other three who were not included in this year's list, they are Charaf Rzine, Zouhair Kazim, and Mohamed Zarzay, as the directorate was not satisfied with their level of performance, so they were referred to the second elite group, and this season they are leading the second division matches as field referees and are appointed as fourth referees in the first division, the last of whom was appointed in the matches that were held last night. The aforementioned source confirmed that all elite referees who were on last season's list were not suspended or deprived of practicing their duties for life as was promoted, and that their classification between the first and second elite groups aims to raise the level of performance and achieve the desired return in the refereeing evaluation. The same source also clarified that the measures taken aim to develop the system and strengthen performance, and have nothing to do with any penalties or life suspension as has been rumored in the past period, calling for the need to be professionally responsible and obtain information from its source and verify it before publishing and promoting it. – List of the first elite referees for the 2024/2025 season: 
– List of the first elite referees for the 2025/2026 season: 
