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Casablanca has long been a city of entertainment, with venues and spaces keeping its busy inhabitants captivated. In the early 20th century, bullfighting aficionados in Dar Beida couldn’t go without the corrida de toros, the Spanish-style bullfighting tradition. A Spanish family that lived in Casablanca and loved bullfighting was behind the construction of the city’s first and last torero arena.
The Castellas, a family of Spanish immigrants who settled in Casablanca by the end of the 19th century, chose Anfa, the city’s most upper-class and Westernized district, to be home to a wooden torero arena. They called it Las Arenas de Casablanca, or as locals used to call it, Les Arènes de Casablanca.
In «Fiestas de toros y sociedad: actas del Congreso Internacional», a book by Antonio Garcia-Baquero Gonzalez, the Arenas of Casablanca are believed to have «existed since the early 20th century».
Bullfighting fans gather in Casablanca
While Puerto Rican author Fredirico Ribes Tovar advances in his book Habla de la Plaza de Casablanca that by the 1910s, the Casablanca arena, located on the emblematic Boulevard d’Anfa, was already up and running, hosting fights and competitions for torero fans to watch, other historical records push its existence to 1920s. Spanish historian Julio Iribarren, in a research paper, indicates that the wooden bullfighting arena of Casablanca was inaugurated in 1921.
To celebrate this inauguration, which happened in October of the same year, bulls from the Conde de la Corte, the popular name given to the livestock farm of the «Heirs of the Excmo. Sr. Conde de la Corte», were fought by the teams of Spanish bullfighters Julián Saiz Saleri, Manuel Varé Valerito, and José García Maera.
Regardless of its first emergence, Gonzalez, based on local news articles issued at the time of its operation, explains that, unlike Tangier’s bullfighting ring, that of Casablanca «reflects more the whim of true 'aficionados,' from the Castella family». That of Tangier, however, «naturally fits into the process of acculturation initiated by the Spanish».
Bullfights were held sporadically in the wooden arena until the 1950s, when renovation works replaced the wood with concrete. Avance Torino writes that the bullring was closed in 1939 until 1953, when works initiated by a Catalan businessman named Vicente Marmaneu, in collaboration with Paul Barriere, a bullfighting enthusiast and friend of the bullfighter and businessman Domingo Dominguín, united to update the facility.
«The work of both made it possible for these arenas to be reopened on March 8, 1953. The event was scheduled with a bullfight in which Jesús Córdoba, José María Martorell, and Calerito performed against bulls from Matías Bernardos and Sánchez Fabrés», wrote the specialized platform.
A total of five important bullfights were held in the renovated venue that season, marking the revival of the Casablanca attraction. Notable bullfighting figures fought in the arenas of Casablanca, including José Escobar on October 12, 1958, a bullfight by José Luis Vázquez for Antonio Ordóñez, Manolo Vázquez, and Juan Antonio Romero on April 23, 1961, and a June 6, 1968, fight with bulls from Salvador Guardiola for a trio made up of Gregorio Sánchez, Manuel Benítez El Cordobés, and Ángel Teruel.
However, a tragic accident occurred in 1960 when a Tangier bullfighter named Luis Álvarez Andaluz II was gored in the ring by a bull and was transported to the hospital. Nine years later, the ring saw its last bullfight, with King Hassan II ending bullfighting due to his disdain for the cruel sport.
The matador and manager Victoriano Valencia, who went to fight in Casablanca in 1953 as a novillero, told Avance Torino that «the Muslim fans were curious and valued the artistic aspect».
Even though bullfighting left Casablanca, the wife of Vicente Marmaneu kept its legacy alive after the death of her husband. «After independence, ruined by the departure of the vast majority of Spaniards residing in Casablanca, Marmaneu opened a restaurant entirely dedicated to bullfighting», Gonzalez wrote.
Her restaurant, located in Casablanca’s city center, was even frequented by bullfighters who left behind a «keepsake that gave the restaurant the status of a sanctuary: donated objects were enshrined there as relics».
A go-to spot for entertainment
In addition to bullfighting, the arena hosted boxing matches, concerts, and big international stars. Inaugurated by Maréchal Lyautey after its restoration, which took 80 days back in 1921, the Arenas of Casablanca hosted a boxing match featuring World Champion boxer Georges Carpentier.
In June 1962, the arena saw the performance of French star Johnny Hallyday, who came to Morocco as part of a tour. The arena also hosted other stars, including Egyptian singer Abdelhalim Hafez, Najat Saghira, the diva Fairuz, and the American vocal group The Platters, as well as Dalida.
For years, the arenas enlightened Casablanca’s artistic and nightlife before being demolished in 1971. Today, what was once a go-to spot for Casablanca residents to watch toreros or attend a concert is now a park, inaugurated earlier in 2024. The latter still bears memories of the old facilities, with an arched stage surrounded by oval arena-like seating.
