Wydad's Transfer Struggles as FAR Rabat Secures Karmoun
Wydad’s summer window, already clouded by legal battles and a transfer ban, has taken another hit. This time, the blow came from the pitch rather than the courtroom.
FAR Rabat have surged ahead in the race for defender Ferji Karmoun, muscling past Wydad at the very moment the Casablanca giants struggle to clear the disputes that threaten their ability to register new signings before the new season.
FAR Rabat outbid Wydad
Wydad moved first. They secured the player’s approval, reached an understanding with Olympic Safi, and looked to have Karmoun lined up as part of their rebuilding plan.
Then FAR Rabat stepped in and tore up the script.
Determined to reinforce a back line stripped of Yunis Abdelhamid and Nouh El Abd, the military club entered negotiations with a stronger financial package than Wydad’s. The impact was immediate: Karmoun’s expected move to the “red club” collapsed.
According to Moroccan outlet Sport7, Olympic Safi responded by raising their demands. With two heavyweights now circling, Safi opted for a simple rule: Karmoun will go to whichever club puts the biggest offer on the table. Sentiment out, hard cash in.
For Wydad, it is a painful twist. A target identified, a pathway cleared, only for the deal to unravel once their rivals arrived with deeper pockets and fewer constraints.
FIFA rulings pile pressure on Wydad
The transfer setback comes against a harsher backdrop. Off the field, Wydad are fighting a battle on multiple fronts.
FIFA’s Dispute Resolution Chamber has issued a fresh ruling against the club in a case involving one of their former foreign players. It is not an isolated incident. This latest decision takes the number of final FIFA rulings against Wydad to five.
Each one carries a cost. Each one tightens the grip of the transfer ban.
To lift that ban and register their new recruits, Wydad’s hierarchy must settle every outstanding file in full. No partial solutions, no shortcuts.
Club president Brahim El Assri has walked into a storm. The current administration inherited a backlog of cases from the previous regime under Hicham Ait Menna, a legacy of disputes that has now crystallised into formal rulings and looming deadlines.
Sport7 reports that Wydad must now resolve five cases with FIFA and more than seven additional files before the National Disputes Committee. It is an extraordinary caseload for a club trying to prepare for a new campaign.
Each day spent in legal negotiations is a day lost in squad building. And as the Karmoun saga shows, rivals are not waiting around.
Fight to keep Benabid
Amid the chaos, El Assri is trying to protect what Wydad still control: their core players.
High on that list is goalkeeper El Mehdi Benabid. While new signings remain hostage to the transfer ban, losing a key figure between the posts would deepen the crisis.
According to Le360 Sport, Wydad have launched advanced talks with Benabid in a bid to secure a contract renewal. The club first moved to settle all of his outstanding financial dues, then tabled a fresh offer aimed at persuading him to stay put.
The ball is now at Benabid’s feet. He is expected to make his final decision in the coming days, a call that could shape Wydad’s immediate future as much as any incoming transfer.
Behind the scenes, El Assri continues to navigate what has become a maze of complaints and claims. Several players have already turned to the disputes committee, either to recover unpaid dues or to seek unilateral termination of their contracts.
For Wydad, the equation is brutal: close the cases, pay the bills, keep the dressing room intact — or watch the squad erode while the rest of the league moves on.
The season has not yet kicked off, but the tone is set. FAR Rabat are strengthening. Olympic Safi are waiting for the highest bidder. FIFA’s rulings are stacking up.
Wydad must now prove they can still compete in the market and in the courtroom before they even get the chance to compete on the pitch.
