When Morocco announced the co-hosting of the 2030 FIFA World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal, the government envisioned a chance to showcase progress and modernity. But for many Moroccan youth, this investment, which amounts to five billion dollars, neglects many priorities for the sake of stadiums, sports complexes, and infrastructure. What started as a call for attention to these issues has quickly escalated into a violent nationwide crisis.

On Sept. 27, the movement led by the youth, also known as GenZ 212, mobilized Moroccans across many different cities of the kingdom, fueling them to demand sweeping reforms to the country’s failing public health and education system. The demonstrations started as peaceful, demanding an end to governmental corruption and the reordering of priorities. The response, however, was violent, demonstrated by the banning of protests, tear gas in the streets, and the gendarmerie, armed police, resorting to lethal force, “killing 3” and injuring many,reports TheNational.

The anger fueling the population has been building up for years. The healthcare system has been critically underfunded, with the government spending only 2.3 percent of its GDP on healthcare, which is less than half of the World Health Organization's recommended minimum of 5 percent. Earlier in September, the deaths of three pregnant women in a public hospital in Agadir sparked public outrage.

What exacerbates this injustice all the more is the human cost of these infrastructure projects. The Rabat Development Project, which is part of the broader World Cup preparation, has displaced hundreds of families through forced demolitions and inadequate compensation. Local authorities have systematically demolished homes and relocated residents to make way for new hotels and infrastructure, offering compensation rates that do not reflect current real estate values. Families who have lived in their neighborhoods for generations have been left homeless or forced into financial precarity, unable to afford comparable housing in their own communities.

Against this governmental neglect, the government’s decision to allocate billions toward World Cup infrastructure feels like a betrayal to many and a money grab that sacrifices the needs of an entire population. These decisions showed a clear indication of the country’s priorities: while Morocco cannot adequately care for its citizens' health or educate its children, yet it can find $5 billion for football stadiums and luxury accommodations. This contradiction is what became the rallying cry of the thousands of GenZ 212 youths who took to the streets.

The violence that followed the initial peaceful protests was sudden and shocking. On October 1, 2025, in Agadir, the Royal Gendarmerie opened fire on protesters outside a gendarmerie post, killing three men. Among the dead was Abdessamade Oubalat, a 22-year-old cinematography student who had come to document the events.

The government's justification for the lethal force was quick, saying that the protesters had thrown stones and allegedly wielded knives, forcing security forces to act in self-defense. Yet Human Rights Watch's analysis of video evidence shows another narrative. While footage does show protesters throwing rocks and breaching the gendarmerie post's gate, the timeline and proportionality of the lethal response remain unclear.

The events that Morocco witnessed in the last two months reveal a government that chose spectacle and international prestige over its citizens’ basic needs. The World Cup will come and go in the span of a month, but the displaced families, the oppressed citizens, and the murdered youth will not see those completed stadiums and will remember when their government chose violence over dialogue.