World Cup 2026: Why Sahrawis are rallying behind Algeria and not Morocco

World Cup 2026: Why Sahrawis are rallying behind Algeria and not Morocco Submitted by Habibulah Mohamed Lamin on Fri, 06/19/2026 - 09:15 Support for Algeria is rooted in almost five decades of refuge and a shared political struggle Sahrawi children play football in the Smara refugee camp in Algeria's Tindouf province in February 2016 (Farouk Batiche/AFP) Off Dust hangs in the desert air like smoke, swirling above a football pitch carved from hardened earth. It's late afternoon, and despite the heat not easing, a group of young men and teenage boys have gathered to play their weekly football match. Each time one of the players runs to get the ball, an orange cloud rises into the air.