Casablanca derby


The Casablanca Derby is the football match in Morocco between Casablanca rivals Raja CA and Wydad AC. Traditionally played in the Stade Mohamed V, it is considered as one of the fiercest derbies in the world.
Since the beginning of Botola, the top tier of the football league system, the two teams have never been relegated and have always played each other every season whether in the league or in Throne Cup. They faced each other outside of national competitions once, during the 2019 Arab Cup of Champion Clubs. This duel is accentuated by a social dimension; Wydad is closer to the bourgeoisie class, while Raja is more popular since it has always been associated with the Moroccan trade union from which many of its founders and presidents belong. However, these ideological differences have faded over time and supporters of the two clubs now come from different social backgrounds.
The post-1980s period is marked by a rivalry in performance and prestige. It intensified even more over in the 2000s with the emergence of ultras groups. The Casablanca Derby is considered to be the football pinnacle in the Kingdom, due to its number of matches which exceeded the 150 in 2022, making it the most played confrontation in Moroccan football history, and the enthusiasm of the supporters who attach particular importance to it since it represents the opposition of the most popular and successful clubs in Morocco.
The top scorer in the history of the Casablanca Derby is Said Ghandi with 7 goals, followed by Mohsine Moutouali and Mouhcine Iajour with six goals each.
WWW derby-casablanca.com

History

Wydad have historically been seen as more middle-class and privileged thanks to the one-time backing of King Mohammed V before his death in 1961. Wydad Casablanca has historically been associated with the Moroccan monarchy due to its close ties with the Moroccan royal family. The club's colors, red and white, are also said to symbolize the Moroccan monarchy.
The Moroccan king Mohammed VI is also a supporter of the club.
Raja Casablanca, on the other hand, has traditionally been associated with leftist and populist politics. The club was founded in 1949 by a group of leftist activists and intellectuals who wanted to create a team that represented the working class. The club's colors, green and white, are said to symbolize the hope and renewal of the Moroccan people.

Incidents and memorable matches

As in most of the world's derbies, riots and fights can take place before, during and especially after a major game.
On February 10, 1957, the first meeting took place between the two rivals, and witnessed Raja's victory 1–0 at Stade Philip in Casablanca.
In 1978, Raja players withdrew from the match against Wydad during the last 10 minutes of the second-half because they were mistreated after conceding a penalty with a red card to their goalkeeper. Raja players did not accept the referee's decision and left the stadium by order of their captain Mohamed Fakhir, while Pitchou sat on the ball and waited with passion to score this penalty but Raja players refused to continue the match. The game ended by a score of 1–0 for Wydad.
In 1996, Raja defeated Wydad 5–1 in the Moroccan Throne Cup quarts-finals. This score is the highest between the two rivals.
On April 6, 2001, Wydad initially won 3–0, but Raja complained about the illegal participation of the substitute Abdelhaq Ait Laarif who was registered with both Wydad and Étoile de Casablanca. The Moroccan federation accorded the win to Raja.
On September 29, 2001, during the 100th derby which was part of the semifinals for the Moroccan Throne Cup, Youssef Belkhouja, a Wydad player, died on the pitch of a heart attack.
On 24 May 2006, there was a fierce competition between the two rivals to clinch the league title. Raja scored first with a penalty by Abdellatif Jrindou, that result would have given Raja the title; but at the end of the match, a staggering strike from a long distance by Hicham Louissi gave Wydad the draw needed to win the league for the 16th time after 13 years of the last cup.
On October 20, 2007, during an encounter between rival team supporters, Hamza Eddali, a Wydad fan who was 17, died. He is to date the last person killed in the Casablanca derby.
On April 18, 2010, after Raja beat Wydad with a score of 1–0, a fight broke out between Wydad and Raja fans. Over one hundred people were arrested.
In 2012, Wydad requested the FIFA and Royal Moroccan Football Federation to count the 5 titles that the club won in the regional championship organized during the Colonial Era in Morocco by French authorities before the creation of the Moroccan federation in 1956 as Botola titles. Their request was accepted and so, increased Wydad's Botola titles from 12 to 17. Wydad is the only club in Morocco to have their titles from the colonial era admitted by the FIFA.
In November 2019, the two rivals met in the second round of the Arab Club Championship. This was the first time that the derby took place in a non-local competition. The first game ended 1–1, with Wydad leading by away goals. The second leg was one of if not the most epic match in derby history, with Wydad going up 4–1 with 15 minutes to play and Raja coming back to score in the 94th minute to make it 4–4, with Raja progressing on away goals. This is the record for most combined goals in derby history but the match is also notable for its extraordinary atmosphere, with numerous Tifos being displayed and fireworks and flares going off throughout the match, the latter of which there were so many it looked at times that the stands were on fire.

Results

Key

; Colors



Botola Pro

These are the meetings in the Botola Pro
SeasonDateHome teamScoreAway team
1956–195710 February 1957Raja1–0Wydad
1956–19572 June 1957Wydad3–0Raja
1957–1958Raja0–0Wydad
1957–1958Wydad1–1Raja
1958–1959Raja0–2Wydad
1958–1959Wydad1–2Raja
1959–1960Raja2–1Wydad
1959–1960Wydad0–0Raja
1960–1961Raja2–0Wydad
1960–1961Wydad0–0Raja
1961–1962Raja1–0Wydad
1961–1962Wydad1–0Raja
1962–1963Raja1–1Wydad
1962–1963Wydad0–1Raja
1963–1964Raja0–1Wydad
1963–1964Wydad1–1Raja
1964–1965Wydad1–1Raja
1964–1965Raja1–2Wydad
1965–1966Raja0–0Wydad
1965–196629 May 1966Wydad0–0Raja
1966–1967Raja0–0Wydad
1966–1967Wydad0–0Raja
1967–1968Raja0–0Wydad
1967–1968Wydad1–3Raja
1968–1969Raja1–1Wydad
1968–1969Wydad1–0Raja
1969–1970Raja0–2Wydad
1969–1970Wydad0–0Raja
1970–1971Raja0–0Wydad
1970–1971Wydad0–0Raja
1971–1972Raja0–0Wydad
1971–1972Wydad1–1Raja
1972–1973Raja1–0Wydad
1972–1973Wydad1–0Raja
1973–1974Raja1–0Wydad
1973–1974Wydad0–0Raja
1974–1975Raja–1–1Wydad
1974–1975Wydad0–0Raja
1975–1976Raja0–0Wydad
1975–1976Wydad1–1Raja
1976–1977Raja1–1Wydad
1976–1977Wydad2–3Raja
1977–1978Raja2–2Wydad
1977–1978Wydad1–1Raja
1978–1979Raja0–1 Wydad
1978–1979Wydad0–0Raja
1979–198023 December 1979Raja1–2Wydad
1979–19804 May 1980Wydad0–2Raja
1980–1981Raja1–0Wydad
1980–1981Wydad1–2Raja
1981–198219 December 1981Raja0–0Wydad
1981–19828 May 1982Wydad1–0Raja
1982–19834 December 1982Raja0–0Wydad
1982–198322 May 1983Wydad1–1Raja
1983–198421 January 1984Raja3–1Wydad
1983–198426 May 1984Wydad2–2Raja
1984–198525 November 1984Raja2–0Wydad
1984–198512 May 1985Wydad1–2Raja
1985–198612 November 1985Raja1–1Wydad
1985–198622 February 1986Wydad1–0Raja
1986–198725 April 1987Raja0–0Wydad
1986–198723 May 1987Wydad1–1Raja
1987–1988Wydad1–0Raja
1987–1988Raja1–0Wydad
1988–19895 February 1989Raja0–1Wydad
1988–19894 June 1989Wydad3–1Raja
1989–199026 November 1989Raja0–1Wydad
1989–19905 May 1990Wydad2–1Raja
1990–19918 December 1990Raja1–1Wydad
1990–19915 May 1991Wydad0–1Raja
1991–199224 November 1991Raja1–1Wydad
1991–199210 May 1992Wydad1–0Raja
1992–199313 December 1992Raja1–2Wydad
1992–1993May 1993Wydad2–2Raja
1993–19945 December 1993Raja1–0Wydad
1993–19943 April 1994Wydad0–0Raja
1994–199518 December 1994Raja1–0Wydad
1994–199521 May 1995Wydad2–1Raja
1995–199611 February 1996Wydad0–3Raja
1995–199626 May 1996Raja0–1Wydad
1996–19973 November 1996Wydad2–2Raja
1996–199717 May 1997Raja2–2Wydad
1997–19982 November 1997Wydad0–0Raja
1997–199829 Mars 1998Raja1–1Wydad
1998–199913 December 1998Raja0–0Wydad
1998–199930 May 1999Wydad0–1Raja
1999–200021 November 1999Wydad0–0Raja
1999–200014 May 2000Raja1–1Wydad
2000–20012 December 2000Raja1–1Wydad
2000–20016 April 2001Wydad0–1Raja
2001–20029 December 2001Wydad2–0Raja
2001–200219 May 2002Raja0–2Wydad
2002–200319 January 2003Raja1–0Wydad
2002–200315 June 2003Wydad0–3Raja
2003–200416 November 2003Wydad0–1Raja
2003–20042 May 2004Raja2–0Wydad
2004–20055 December 2004Raja1–1Wydad
2004–200530 April 2005Wydad0–1Raja
2005–20064 December 2005Wydad1–2Raja
2005–200624 May 2006Raja1–1Wydad
2006–200712 November 2006Raja0–1Wydad
2006–200718 February 2007Wydad1–1Raja
2007–200824 November 2007Raja2–0Wydad
2007–200823 Mars 2008Wydad0–1Raja
2008–200916 November 2008Raja0–0Wydad
2008–20093 April 2009Wydad1–0Raja
2009–201020 December 2009Raja1–1Wydad
2009–201018 April 2010Wydad0–1Raja
2010–20114 December 2010Raja1–2Wydad
2010–201110 April 2011Wydad1–1Raja
2011–201231 December 2011Wydad0–0Raja
2011–20126 May 2012Raja0–1Wydad
2012–201316 December 2012Raja1–1Wydad
2012–201329 April 2013Wydad1–1Raja
2013–201424 November 2013Wydad1–1Raja
2013–20146 April 2014Raja2–0Wydad
2014–201530 November 2014Wydad2–1Raja
2014–201511 April 2015Raja2–2Wydad
2015–201620 December 2015Wydad0–0Raja
2015–20168 May 2016Raja3–0Wydad
2016–201727 November 2016Raja0–0Wydad
2016–201723 April 2017Wydad1–0Raja
2017–201810 February 2018Wydad1–2Raja
2017–201814 April 2018Raja1–1Wydad
2018–20196 January 2019Raja0–1Wydad
2018–201921 April 2019Wydad2–2Raja
2019–202022 December 2019Raja1–0Wydad
2019–202024 September 2020Wydad0–0Raja
2020–202121 Mars 2021Wydad2–0Raja
2020–20213 July 2021Raja1–2Wydad
2021–20226 November 2021Wydad1–1Raja
2021–202216 June 2022Raja2–0Wydad
2022–202323 October 2022Wydad2–1Raja
2022–20235 April 2023Raja2–2Wydad
2023–20243 January 2024Wydad0–2Raja
2023–202402 June 2024Raja1–0Wydad
2024–202522 November 2024Raja1–1Wydad
2024–202512 April 2025Wydad1–1Raja
2025–202629 October 2025Wydad0–0Raja
2025–20262026Raja–Wydad

Throne Cup

These are the meetings in the Moroccan Throne Cup
SeasonDateRoundHome teamScoreAway team
1963–196417 May 19641/2 FinalRaja0–0Wydad
1963–196419 May 19641/2 Final ReplayWydad1–0Raja
1964–19651/4 FinalRaja2–1Wydad
1973–19741/2 FinalWydad1–1 Raja
1989–19901/16 FinalWydad2–2Raja
1989–19901/16 Final ReplayRaja1–0Wydad
1992–19931/4 FinalWydad1–2Raja
1995–199618 February 19961/4 FinalRaja5–1Wydad
1997–19984 February 19981/4 FinalWydad2–2Raja
1997–19986 February 19981/4 Final ReplayRaja0–1Wydad
2000–200129 September 20011/4 FinalWydad1–0Raja
2002–200311 October 20031/2 FinalWydad1–1 Raja
2006–200720 October 20071/4 FinalRaja0–2Wydad
2011–20126 November 20121/2 FinalWydad1–3Raja
2020–20217 July 20221/4 FinalWydad2–0Raja
2021–20229 July 20231/2 FinalWydad0–1Raja

Arab Club Champions Cup

These are the meetings in the Arab Club Champions Cup
SeasonDateRoundHome teamScoreAway team
2019–20202 November 20191/16 Final 1st legRaja1–1Wydad
2019–202023 November 20191/16 Final 2nd legWydad4–4Raja

Statistics

Honours

Wydad leads Raja in terms of overall trophies, while both have three titles in the CAF Champions League.

Head-to-head ranking (1957–2025)


P.575859606162636465666768697071727374757677787980818283848586878889909192939495969798990001020304050607080910111213141516171819202122232425
1111111111111111111111111111111
22222222222222222222222222
33333333style="color:white;">3333333333333333
44444444444444444
5555555555555555
66666666
777777
88888
99999999
101010
111111
1212
1313
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

Total: Wydad with 39 higher finishes, Raja with 30 higher finishes.

Personnel at both clubs

Players

The first players to move from Raja to Wydad and back were Abdulaziz Anini and Ezzeddine Abdel-Rafi in 1973.
;Raja then Wydad
;Wydad then Raja

Managers

;Raja then Wydad
;Wydad then Raja