A coincidence is worth more than a thousand plans...

This old Arabic saying perfectly encapsulates how Aziz and Ouakrim met. Aziz is a Moroccan fan who travels the world supporting his national team in all football disciplines. He lives in Sydney and recently attended the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, the FIFA U-17 World Cup Indonesia 2023™, the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™, the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and several other competitions under the FIFA and CAF banners, such as the most recent Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d'Ivoire.

Yet despite attending all these tournaments, he never once met Ouakrim, who turned out to be a fellow countryman who also avidly follows the national teams. Coincidently, Ouakrim also lives in Sydney and has attended most the tournaments that Aziz has been to. Fate finally brought them together at the FIFA Futsal World Cup Uzbekistan 2024™ and they got to know each other in Tashkent.

Chatting to FIFA.com/Inside about meeting Ouakrim for the first time in Uzbekistan, Aziz said: "Actually, I didn't know Ouakrim until we arrived here in Tashkent. He was introduced to me by a TV presenter from a sports channel in Morocco, who said, ‘Oh, I know another Moroccan who lives in Sydney’, and he put us in touch. So, that was a really lovely coincidence. Moreover, he actually lives on the North Shore, which is not very far from where I live in Sydney. But still we’d never met. So, I’m sure we’ll get together in Sydney in the future."

Ouakrim echoed Aziz's sentiment, saying, "It’s a really small world. When I came here, I was told that there’s this guy who’s come from Sydney, so I asked where I could find him, as I’d never met anyone else from Sydney on my trips supporting Morocco. As we were sharing our stories, we realised we’d both started following the national team at the same time, at Qatar 2022, and that we’d been doing the same circuit since then. It’s quite a nice coincidence."

Aziz had always dreamed of attending a FIFA World Cup but never had the opportunity before Qatar 2022. "Back when I was working in China, I actually wanted to go to the 1998 World Cup in France, but my company wouldn't let me go. After that, I promised myself that if we qualified again, I’d definitely go," explained Aziz. "However, we didn’t qualify for another 20 years. I could have gone in 2018, but I got really sick. I was wheel-chair bound and couldn’t make it to Russia. I promised myself that I’d definitely attend one once I could walk. I remained passionate about attending the World Cup and made it in 2022, and since then, I’ve been following Morocco."

Ouakrim had the same dream, telling us, "I've been following the Atlas Lions since I was a kid back home. I remember in the early '70s, we used to watch their games. I’ve really loved the sport since 1970, when Morocco took part in the World Cup in Mexico. But then I left Morocco to live in [the United] States for some time and then moved to Australia. I went to the 1994 World Cup in the USA, which was really convenient as I didn't have kids at the time. After the children came, it became very difficult to travel, but now that they’ve grown up, I said why not? So I travelled to Qatar for the World Cup. It’s not only about the game – it’s the love of the flag and the nation, which means a lot to me."

Despite attending many tournaments in recent years, Aziz still has great memories of Qatar 2022, saying: "For sure, Qatar. It was the most spectacular tournament in Moroccan football history as well as my first, so it was amazing. Just to be there and see Morocco reach the semi-final was just… You couldn't even dream it, if you know what I mean. So, it was wonderful, and I'll cherish it for the rest of my life. I had my two boys with me too and my nephew. We still talk about it from time to time – it was wonderful."

Ouakrim, for his part, also spoke passionately about Qatar 2022. "For me, Qatar has to be one of the best tournaments of all time. I hope something better will come in the future, and I'm sure it will, but it was very special for us. Everything was perfect from start to finish. Sometimes when I'm bored at home, I just stick on the videos and watch all the games, over and over again."

Although Aziz and Oakrim have attended many tournaments, most notably the FIFA World Cup and the FIFA Women's World Cup, they are currently enjoying the FIFA Futsal World Cup Uzbekistan 2024™ immensely. "What I really enjoy, apart from the futsal, of course, is being in a Muslim country. That has been great to see and experience, and the food here is incredible," Aziz revealed.

Asked about his impression of Uzbekistan, Ouakrim said: "The first thing I noticed about this beautiful city is that it’s one of cleanest I’ve ever seen – I mean super clean, and I travel quite a bit around the world. They go out of their way to help here. Moreover, the food here is magnificent; no matter what you eat, Uzbek cuisine is exquisite. I recommend it."

Asked about his fondest memories of Uzbekistan, Aziz said: "Visiting all the museums and the sites; they’re actually quite spectacular. I mean, you don’t realise that the Silk Road and all the monuments here are so spectacular. I’m really going to cherish this for the rest of my life. And, of course, the futsal was really nice too."

For his part, Ouakrim said: "I didn’t have a chance to see that much, but I'm organising a tour on Monday and Tuesday with a local man. We’re going to all the sites, and he's going to drive me around. So, that will make things a lot easier, as will the fact that he speaks English as well."

Asked what message they would send to the Morocco futsal team before their upcoming showdown with IR Iran, Aziz said: "Actually, 85% of the team and the staff are from my hometown in Kenitra in Morocco, so I actually know most of the players, so I don’t really want to put any pressure on them. I haven’t met them here, so all I would say to them is ‘just play your game and enjoy yourself. We’ll support you whether you lose or win, and we’re here for you.’

"We just want them to believe in themselves as they always do. We have a great coach in Hicham Dguig. He is one of the best in the world because Morocco are [ranked] sixth in the world in futsal," Ouakrim insisted.

The ‘Football Unites the World’ motto is evident in Aziz and Ouakrim’s story. Although they both live in Australia and hail from Morocco, what brought them together was football, the FIFA Futsal World Cup Uzbekistan 2024™ and their passion for the beautiful game and the Moroccan national teams.