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Morocco Wins Olympic Soccer Game Against Argentina After Fans Cause Delay
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Intermediate
Intermediate
Invaders run on the pitch during the men's Group B soccer match between Argentina and Morocco at Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, July 24, 2024, in Saint-Etienne, France. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

Morocco Wins Olympic Soccer Game Against Argentina After Fans Cause Delay

July 24th, 2024

At the Olympic soccer game in France, Morocco beat Argentina 2-1. But it was not a normal game. Some people who were watching got very upset and ran onto the field. They were angry because Argentina scored a late goal, but the goal was not allowed after a video check said it was offside. The game had to stop for nearly two hours because it was not safe. After the game started again, there were no people watching in the stadium. People in Morocco were really happy when their team won. They love soccer a lot. It is a big part of life there. Some were worried that the goal was not allowed because they thought the referees did not want Morocco to win. But in the end, Morocco won and it was a very special victory for them.
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💭 Discussion Questions


1
. What was the result of the Olympic soccer game between Morocco and Argentina?
2
. Why did the people watching the soccer game run onto the field?
3
. How did the people in Morocco feel about their team's victory?

📖 Vocabulary


🌐 Cultural context


This article is about a soccer match between Morocco and Argentina. Soccer, known as football outside of North America, is deeply loved in Morocco, where it's a major sport. Disputes over referee decisions, like the disallowed goal, can spark strong reactions from fans. Celebrations in Morocco show national pride in their team’s success.

🧠 Further reading


Video assistant referee
In football, there is a special helper for the main referee called the video assistant referee, or VAR. This person watches the game on video to help the referee make correct decisions. They have assistants, too, called AVARs, who watch different parts of the game. AVAR1 looks at the main camera, AVAR2 checks for offsides, and AVAR3 helps with TV programs and communication. There are also three replay operators who help choose the best camera views. VAR was officially added to the football rules on March 3, 2018. It is used to correct very clear mistakes or big things that were missed in the game. VAR can check four types of situations: 1. Goals - to see if there was a mistake when a goal was scored. 2. Penalties - to check if a penalty should or should not be given. 3. Red cards - to decide if a player did something really bad that needs a red card. 4. Mistaken identity - to make sure the right player is punished for a rule break. The idea is to make as few changes as possible but to make sure the important parts of the game are fair.

Football hooliganism
In football, sometimes people do bad things. They fight and break stuff when they watch games. These people, called hooligans, form groups and they can be very mean to fans from other teams. When two teams that don't like each other play, the fighting can get really bad. An example is when Exeter City plays Plymouth Argyle. The fighting can happen before, during, or after the football game. Sometimes it happens in places that are not near the football stadium. This is because they don't want the police to catch them. But fights can also start suddenly at the stadium or on nearby streets. In some very bad situations, people, including police, have been hurt or even died. The police have to come in and stop the fighting. The hooligans like to go to different places to follow their national team and they fight against the home team's fans. They sometimes cause trouble in public, not just at football games. These hooligans may use a special name to show which team they support. Football hooliganism is very dangerous and can lead to lots of violence. Besides fighting, these fans can be very disorderly and cause conflicts. Some hooligans have very extreme ideas and beliefs that can make the violence worse. They care more about fighting than watching the football game, even though they sometimes say they do it because they love their team.

Emily Sams
Emily Sams is an American soccer player. She plays defense for the Orlando Pride team. Before, she played soccer at Florida State University. Her team won a big college competition in 2021. Emily was born in 1999 in Boise, Idaho. Later, her family moved to Florida. She was very good at soccer in high school. She scored a lot and won some awards. In college, Emily played in many games and scored goals. She had to stop playing for a while because she hurt her knee two times. But she came back and played well. Her team did great, and she got some special awards. Now, Emily is playing soccer as her job. She was one of the first players chosen to join a professional team in 2023. She is going to keep playing soccer and working hard.