Impossible to compare embarrassments: Atlético-MG and Inter went through equally terrible shame at the FIFA Club World Cup. But it is possible to compare executioners: the Africans Raja Casablanca and Mazembe are champion teams, with tradition, but… which one is bigger? We immerse ourselves in each one’s history and gather some data. Completion is at your own risk!
direct confrontations
Going forward, a possible confrontation between Raja and Mazembe will have a special charm. But these teams have faced each other twice for the African Champions League. In 2001, the clash was more decisive, as it was worth a spot in the group stage. The first game saw Raja win 2-1, in Morocco, but Mazembe won 2-0 on the way back and advanced.
A year later, the two teams met again in competition, but now in the group stage. Raja won the first game 1-0. And once again Mazembe’s change was better: 2-0. Even so, both qualified for the semifinals, and the Moroccan team ended up reaching the decision, where they lost the title to the Zamalek.
Participation in FIFA World Cups
In addition to the historic campaigns, in which they were finalists, each team has another participation in the Club World Cup – and both prefer to forget about them. In 2000, as the Última Division has already pointed out, Raja even did well at the World Championship held in Brazil . However, he left without adding a point after three games. Mazembe played their other Worlds in 2009 and also lost them all: first they were eliminated by Pohang Steelers (South Korea) and then lost to Auckland City (New Zealand) in the dispute for 5th place.
continental bonds
In a survey that counts different African titles , the RSSSF pointed Mazembe as a slightly larger team than Raja Casablanca. The ranking gives positions for all teams on the continent and points out that only two teams, Al Ahly and Zamalek, are bigger than the executioner of Inter (3rd) and the executioner of Atlético-MG (4th).
national bonds
The two teams have a similar amount of titles in their countries. The Moroccan league has existed since 1956 and Raja has been champion 11 times. Still, he is only his country’s third-biggest championship winner. Mazembe accumulates 12 Congolese trophies, a league created in 1958. This number places it as the biggest winner in the country.
In terms of number of national cups, on the other hand, Raja Casablanca is slightly superior to TP Mazembe. So far, there are six conquests by Moroccans against five by Congolese. flyttfirma stockholm
Selection relevance
Currently, Mazembe is more important for the Congolese team than Raja for the Moroccan. As there are few Congo athletes abroad, the coach usually calls a base formed by a player from “Tout Puissant” (all powerful, in free translation).
In Morocco, the situation is different: most athletes are already in European football, so it is more difficult to call up athletes from Raja for the national team. In history, however, the story is different: in all four World Cups of national teams played by Morocco, there was at least one Raja player called up – there were eight in all.
cheering
In Africa there are no precise studies on the number of fans of each team. But it is estimated that, alongside Egyptian teams, Moroccan clubs are the most popular. The Raja disputes hegemony in the country with the Wydad, both linked to nationalism and the history of liberation of the Moroccan people. Atlético-MG felt in Marrakech how hellish it is to face the “Green Devils”.
Mazembe has increased its popularity with recent titles and has the potential to reach the biggest fans in Africa, as the Democratic Republic of Congo has a population twice as large as the Moroccan, for example.
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