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The Africa Cup of Nations final is set to take place this weekend and hosts Morocco will hope to avoid an issue that impacted the tournament two years ago. Ivory Coast won the prestigious trophy on home soil in but their triumph was not without drama.

In the 2024 final, the home side were forced to come from behind following William Troost-Ekong’s goal for Nigeria in the first half. Franck Kessie’s effort around the hour mark levelled the tie before Sebastien Haller completed a fairytale story by scoring the winner with less than 10 minutes remaining.

There were joyous scenes in the 60,000-capacity Alassane Ouattara Stadium as the nation celebrated their third AFCON title. However, the team’s home ground, which opened in 2020, had caused national outcry just months before the tournament.

The stadium, named after the country’s President, cost around £200million to build but there was little glamour on display during Ivory Coast’s friendly with Mali in September 2023. The game was abandoned at half-time after heavy rainfall caused a waterlogged pitch.

However, the weather’s impact was not restricted to the pitch. Football Ground Guide reported that the stadium's corridors and halls were also flooded following the downpour.

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The incident occurring shortly before the venue was due to host the AFCON finaland led to a public apology from the country's Minister of Sport Claude Paulin Danho. The Confederation of African Football later attributed the issue to algae, which prevented the rain from soaking into the turf.

In the aftermath, Ouattara called for an additional £25m to be invested to resolve the problem. Despite the extra funds being allocated, the pitch proved far from pristine during AFCON.

The tournament had already been rescheduled to early 2024, despite retaining the 2023 branding, due to concerns about the weather. The Alassane Ouatarra Stadium hosted Ivory Coast’s 2-0 opener against Guinea-Bissau.

However, by the fourth AFCON game held at the stadium, the pitch was already causing clear issues. During the match between Ivory Coast and Nigeria, Arsenal legend Ian Wright posted on social media: "The state of this pitch in the Ivory Coast vs Nigeria game!!! Ridiculous."

It was the first time Ivory Coast had hosted the tournament since 1984. However, the state of the grass would have been the least of the players’ concerns as the squad achieved the country’s first AFCON title since 2015.

This weekend, the spotlight will be on hosts Morocco as the team seeks to deliver a long-awaited AFCON trophy at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat. The Atlas Lions have not won the competition since 1976.

A penalty shootout victory over Nigeria sealed Morocco’s place in Sunday’s final. They will battle Senegal for the trophy after Sadio Mane’s semi-final winner against Egypt.

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