Wikipedia

IR Tanger

(Redirected from Ittihad Tanger)

Ittihad Riadi Tanger (Arabic: الاتحاد الرياضي لطنجة, lit.'Sports Union of Tangier'),[2] often shortened to IR Tanger or the abbreviation IRT, is a Moroccan football club based in Tangier, that competes in Botola, Morocco's top professional football league.[3]

IR Tanger
اتحاد طنجة
Full nameIttihad Riadi de Tanger
الاتحاد الرياضي لطنجة
Nickname(s)arousat achamal' (team)
Hercules (supporters)
Short nameIRT
Founded1936; 88 years ago (1936)
as Unión Deportiva España de Tánger
officially: 1944; 80 years ago (1944)
GroundIbn Batouta Stadium
Capacity65,000[1]
ChairmanMohammed Cherkaoui
ManagerOmar Najhi
LeagueBotola
2022–2315th of 16
WebsiteClub website
Current season

The club was founded in 1936 as Unión Deportiva España de Tánger (UDET); After the independence of Morocco in 1956, the club changed was renamed to Unión Deportiva de Tánger (UDT). In 1983, several local football clubs were merged into UDT, and Ittihad Riadi Tanger was formed.

IR Tanger's home games are hosted at Ibn Batouta Stadium. In the past, Stade de Marchan was their home stadium until its demolition.

IR Tanger has a large fan base in northern Morocco, particularly in the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region.

History edit

 
IR Tangier back in the late 1980s and 1990s.

IR Tanger was created by the fusion of several clubs in 1944. In the early 1990s, IR Tangier became one of the most successful clubs in the Botola. However, the club failing to win any trophies, although they came close in the 1989–90 season when they finished as runners-up. The 1989 season was considered by many to be their best season, as the team was victorious over many other notable Botola clubs, defeating Raja Casablanca 3-1 and Maghreb de Fès 3–0.

During the late 1990s, IR Tanger failed to achieve anything besides maintaining itself in the Botola. The club ended up getting relegated twice before the early 2000s, finishing unsuccessfully during the 1995–96 and 1997–98 seasons.

In July 2000, the club hired Coach Omar Raiss. He oversaw the improvement in the club's performance during the 2000–01 season, during which they scored 50 goals. Because of their performance, the club received a promotion. Their performance declined, however, with their only notable achievement in the early 2000s being a Throne Cup they won during the semi-final in the 2005–06 season. The following season became IR Tanger's last in the Botola for the next few years. During this time, the club's results were poor, and they would very often finish unsuccessfully.

During later years, after IR Tanger set up a new directive committee, it nearly made it back to the Botola during the 2013–14 season. With a series of transfers and the arrival of Coach Mohamed Amine Benhachem, the team cruised through the 2014–15 season, losing only twice and finishing first by a five-point lead.

During the 2015–16 season, the team made a comeback to the Botola Pro. The club contracted with many local and foreign players, finishing third in their first season and qualifying for the 2017 CAF Confederation Cup for the first time.

 
IR Tangiers team in 2015–16 Season

Supporters and rivalries edit

In 2003, the club's ultras, called Ultras Tanger, was founded; this group no longer exists and has instead been replaced by the ultras group named Ultras Hercules that was founded in 2007.

IR Tanger has a rivalry with Moghreb Tétouan, which belongs to the neighboring city, Tétouan.

Crest and shirt edit

The official crest was designed by the club's founders. It depicts the full name of the club and the year it was founded. The blue lining represents the club's location in northern Morocco.

The official home shirts are similar to the crest, colored blue and white. IR Tanger's traditional away colors change every season but are usually based on light blue with a sponsor's logo on the top.

Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors edit

Stadium edit

Main article: Ibn Batouta Stadium

The club hosted their home matches in the Stade de Marchan, a stadium with a capacity of 15,000 seats, until it was demolished. The Stade de Marchan hosted several notable matches like the one between IR Tanger vs. Wydad Casablanca during the 1989–90 season. In 2011 the club moved to the then-new Ibn Batouta Stadium, which has a capacity of 45,000 (and a potential for a maximum of 75,000 seats).

Stadium Period
Stade de Marchan 1983–2011
Ibn Batouta Stadium 2012–present
 
Ibn Batouta Stadium

Season results edit

Main article: List of IR Tanger seasons

League and cup edit

Season League Top goalscorer Moroccan Cup
Div. Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Name League
2015–16 1st 3rd 30 14 8 8 36 23 50   Hervé Guy 7 Semi-finals
2016–17 1st 5th 30 12 9 9 33 25 45   Ahmed Hammoudan 6 Round of 16
2017–18 1st 1st 30 14 10 6 34 23 52   Mehdi Naghmi 13 Round of 16
2018–19 1st 5th 30 9 13 8 27 30 40   Mehdi Naghmi 9 Quarter-finals
2019–20 1st 14th 30 7 11 12 20 36 32   Sofian El Moudane 4 Round of 16
2020–21 1st 8th 30 10 6 14 29 36 36   Axel Méyé 12 Round of 16
2021–22 1st 13th 30 8 9 13 31 41 33   Axel Méyé 12 Round of 16
2022–23 1st 14th 30 8 5 17 23 39 29   Sofian El Moudane 5 Round of 32

African competitions edit

Year Competition Round Opponent Home Away Aggregate Q
2017 CAF Confederation Cup PR   AS Douanes 1–0 2–1 3–1  
1R   AS Kaloum 3–0 0–1 3–1  
PO   Horoya AC 3–2 0–2 3–4  
2018–19 CAF Champions League PR   Elect-Sport FC 1–0 0–0 1–0  
1R   JS Saoura 1–0 0–2 1–2  
2018–19 CAF Confederation Cup PO   Zamalek SC 0–0 1–3 1–3  

Arab competition edit

Year Competition Round Opponent Score Position Q
2019–20 Arab Club Champions Cup PR   Riffa SC 0–2 2nd  
  Al-Zawraa SC 3–0
  Horseed FC 1–6
Notes
  • PR: Preliminary round
  • 1R: First round
  • PO: Play-off round

Honours edit

Type Competition Titles Winning Seasons Runners-up
Domestic Botola 1 2017–18 1989–90
Botola 2 2 2000–01, 2014–15 1986–87, 1996–97,

Players edit

Current squad edit

As of 2 January 2024[4]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK   ALG Gaya Merbah
2 DF   MAR Youssef Chaina
4 DF   MAR Mohamed Saoud
6 MF   MAR Nouaman Aarab (vice-captain)
7 FW   MAR Nabil Jaadi
8 MF   MAR Faouzi Abdelmottalib
9 FW   MAR Ismail Khafi
10 MF   MAR Reda Jaadi (captain)
11 FW   MAR Abdellatif Akhrif
12 GK   MAR Imad Askar
13 DF   MAR Oussama Al Aiz
14 MF   MAR Mohamed Said Bouksyr
15 MF   MAR Ayoub Jarfi
16 MF   MAR Ahmed Chentouf (3rd-captain)
17 MF   MAR Abdelhamid Maâli
No. Pos. Nation Player
18 FW   MAR Hamza El Wasti
19 FW   MAR Jawad Ghabra
20 FW   MAR Hassan Zraibi
21 MF   MAR Mahmoud El Kayssoumi
22 DF   MAR Zakaria Kiani
23 DF   MAR Anass Lamrabat
28 FW   ESP Alexis Sánchez Pérez
29 DF   SEN El Hadji Youssoupha Konaté
30 FW   MAR Ali El Harrak
31 DF   ALG Walid Bencherifa
37 GK   MAR Youssef Laghzal
70 MF   MAR Hamza Hassani
72 GK   MAR Badreddine Benachour
80 MF   SEN Elhadj Madicke Kane
93 FW   MAR Zouhair El Ouassli

Reserve team and Youth Academy edit

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
25 DF   MAR Mohammed El Mehidi
26 MF   MAR Salah Cheffani
No. Pos. Nation Player
34 MF   MAR Yassine El Guartit

Former players edit

Personnel edit

Current technical staff edit

Position Name
First team head coach   Hilal Et-tair
Assistant coach   Abdelouahed Benkacem
Goalkeeping coach   Mohammed Bestara
Fitness coach   Rachid Blej
Performance analyst   Ahmed Zekhnini
Club doctor   Houssine Azizi
Physiotherapist   Nacereddine Jabouri
Healer   Abdelmonhem Nafie
Delegate   Ali Haddou
Hope's team coach   Khalid Bahid
Hope's team assistant coach   Youssef Sekour
Hope's Team Fitness coach   Ahmed Azmi
Formation center manager   Abdelhakim Ben Saddik

Source:[5][6]

Managers edit

  •   Omar Najhi (Sep 2023–Jan 2024)
  •   Hilal Et-tair (Jan 2024–)

Management edit

Board of directors edit

Position Name
President Mohammed Cherkaoui
Managing Director Mohamed Hmami
First Vice President Mohamed Boulaich
Second Vice President Abdelhanin Gharafi
Third Vice President Rachid El Hassani
Fourth Vice President Anass Lamrabat
General Secretary Abdellah El Mrabet Dajidi
Vice General Secretary Issam El Ghachi
Treasurer Redouan Bouhdid
Vice Treasurer Said Zekri

Source:[7][8]

Presidents edit

  • Abdeslam Arbaine
  • Hassan Bouhrize
  • Abdelhak Bakhat (2009)
  • Adil Defouf (–2012)
  • Abdelhamid Aberchane (2013–21)
  • Mohamed Ahagan (2021–22)
  • Mohammed Cherkaoui (2023–)

Partnerships edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Stade Ibn Batouta (Grand Stade de Tanger)". StadiumDB.com. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  2. ^ "The blue northern club of Tangiers". Archived from the original on 20 October 2016.
  3. ^ "Ittihad Tanger". www.goalzz.com. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
  4. ^ "The Team is complete –قائمة الفريق للموسم الكروي 2023/24" [Team list for the 2023/24 football season]. clubirt. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  5. ^ "الإطار الوطني هلال الطير مدربا لاتــحــاد طــنــجــة" [The national manager, Hilal Ettair, coach of Ittihad Tanger]. 21 January 2023.
  6. ^ "بـــلاغ" [announcement]. 17 July 2023.
  7. ^ "Botola: Mohamed Cherkaoui, un nouveau président au chevet de l'R Tanger" [Botola: Mohamed Cherkaoui, a new president at the bedside of IR Tanger]. sport.le360.ma. 16 January 2023.
  8. ^ "لائحة المكتب المديري لفريق اتحاد طنجة لكرة القدم ولجانه" [Regulations of the managerial office of the Ittihad Tanger Football Association team and its committees]. Ittihad Riadi De Tanger. 19 May 2023.
  9. ^ "فريق اتحاد طنجة يوقع اتفاقية شراكة وتعاون مع فريق شباب بلوزداد الجزائري" [Ittihad Tangiers signs a partnership and cooperation agreement with the Algerian club Chaba Belouizdad] (in Arabic). tanjaelkobra.com. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  10. ^ "وفد من فريق اتحاد طنجة يزور مدينة برشلونة لتوقيع اتفاقية شراكة مع نادي اسبانيول" [A delegation from Ittihad Tanger visits Barcelona to sign a partnership agreement with Espanyol] (in Arabic). IR Tanger. 20 September 2018. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  11. ^ "El C.D. Leganés firma un acuerdo de colaboración con el Ittihad de Tanger" [El C.D. Leganés firma un acuerdo de colaboración con el Ittihad de Tanger] (in Spanish). CD Leganés. 2 May 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2022.

External links edit

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