Morocco Denies Landing Permit to Mamelodi Sundowns Charter Flight
Mamelodi Sundowns players and technical staff were stranded for eight hours aboard their charter aircraft at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Tuesday, after Moroccan civil aviation authorities withheld a landing permit for the team’s flight to Rabat.
The South African champions are scheduled to face Morocco’s AS FAR in the second leg of the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League final on Sunday, 24 May 2026, at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium.
The club’s charter operator applied for the landing clearance last Wednesday and has been awaiting approval since submitting the request.
According to club sources, Mamelodi Sundowns received assurances that the permit would be granted by the Moroccan Civil Aviation Authority on Tuesday morning. After eight hours on the tarmac with no clearance issued, the players and technical team disembarked from the aircraft.
Mamelodi Sundowns carry a slender but crucial advantage into the decisive fixture, having defeated AS FAR 1-0 in the first leg at a packed Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Sunday. Aubrey Modiba’s first-half strike proved the difference.
The return leg in Rabat will see AS FAR attempt to overturn the deficit in front of a hostile home crowd as both sides vie for Africa’s premier club prize.
