{"id":6899,"date":"2026-04-25T16:03:18","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T15:03:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/?p=6899"},"modified":"2026-04-25T16:03:18","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T15:03:18","slug":"when-the-future-of-kickboxing-is-shaped-behind-closed-doors-and-morocco-is-left-outside-decision-making-circles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/when-the-future-of-kickboxing-is-shaped-behind-closed-doors-and-morocco-is-left-outside-decision-making-circles\/","title":{"rendered":"When the future of kickboxing is shaped behind closed doors\u2026 and Morocco is left outside decision-making circles"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"2759\" data-end=\"3262\">At first glance, it appears to be a technical development, but in reality it reflects a deeper restructuring of global kickboxing power dynamics. The election of <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">Espen Lund<\/span><\/span> to the Executive Committee of the <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">International World Games Association<\/span><\/span> (2026\u20132030 term) coincides with a transitional phase within the Moroccan Royal Federation of Kickboxing. This overlap is not accidental; it highlights a strategic reshaping of influence in a rapidly evolving combat sport landscape.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"3264\" data-end=\"3744\">Lund, Vice-President of the <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">World Association of Kickboxing Organizations<\/span><\/span> and President of WAKO Europe, secured 33 out of 39 votes, a result that signals not only personal legitimacy but also the consolidation of European influence within global governing structures. Within the ecosystem linked to the <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">International Olympic Committee<\/span><\/span>, the IWGA plays a crucial role through <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">The World Games<\/span><\/span>, which function as a gateway toward potential Olympic recognition.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3264\" data-end=\"3744\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"x1ejq31n x18oe1m7 x1sy0etr xstzfhl x6ikm8r x10wlt62\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fworld.kickboxing.federation%2Fposts%2Fpfbid034t58UTSP6bxJYZ2VahuEmcPapaBJudd2tf9DNj2txVrsqMvrFjFbPmLHFFCHypEfl&amp;show_text=true&amp;width=500\" width=\"500\" height=\"717\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"3746\" data-end=\"3787\">In this context, a stark reality emerges:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"3789\" data-end=\"3888\"><strong data-start=\"3792\" data-end=\"3888\">Morocco is outside decision-making circles = outside influence over the future of the sport.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"3890\" data-end=\"4222\">Although Morocco remains an official member of WAKO, its presence is largely symbolic due to the absence of representation in key international executive bodies. This transforms participation into passive engagement in a system where real power is increasingly concentrated within institutional networks rather than sporting arenas.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"4224\" data-end=\"4537\">At the same time, the Moroccan federation\u2019s electoral congress unfolds as an internal restructuring process. Yet the fundamental question is not about leadership changes, but about strategic direction: is this merely administrative reshuffling, or a genuine attempt to integrate into global governance structures?<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"4539\" data-end=\"4833\">The analysis shows that the issue is no longer purely athletic. It has become structural and geopolitical within sport governance. Nations that influence kickboxing today are those occupying decision-making positions within WAKO and IWGA, not necessarily those producing the strongest athletes.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"4835\" data-end=\"5142\">As the <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">The World Games<\/span><\/span> approach in 2029 in <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">Karlsruhe<\/span><\/span>, the gap widens between countries shaping the future and those merely observing it. Morocco, despite its significant talent pool, remains caught between sporting performance and institutional absence.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"5144\" data-end=\"5301\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">Ultimately, the real contest is no longer inside the ring\u2014it is within the governing structures that define who gets to shape the future of the sport itself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At first glance, it appears to be a technical development, but in reality it reflects a deeper restructuring of global kickboxing power dynamics. The election of Espen Lund to the Executive Committee of the International World Games Association (2026\u20132030 term) coincides with a transitional phase within the Moroccan Royal Federation of Kickboxing. This overlap is [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6900,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-6899","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kick-kickboxing-muay-thai"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6899"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6899"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6901,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6899\/revisions\/6901"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}