Two months after that controversial 2025 Africa Cup of Nations final, CAF have overturned the result and awarded the match to Morocco, stripping Senegal of the title, despite their 1-0 victory on the field.
“The Confédération Africaine de Football (“CAF”) Appeal Board decided today that in application of Article 84 of the Regulations of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), the Senegal National Team is declared to have forfeited the Final Match of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations… with the result of the Match being recorded as 3–0 in favour of the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football (FRMF),” CAF announced in a statement published on its official website this Tuesday.
This major decision stems from that final, in which Senegal’s players temporarily refused to continue playing after deeming a penalty awarded to Morocco during extra time illegitimate. Ultimately, Brahim Diaz missed the opportunity, and minutes later Pape Gueye scored the goal that saw Senegal emerge victorious and lift the trophy.
What do the AFCON regulations say?
After that controversial final, Morocco filed a complaint with CAF arguing that Senegal had violated the tournament’s regulations. Specifically, the claim pointed to the application of Articles 82 and 84 of the Regulations of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations.
Article 82 states: “If, for any reason whatsoever, a team withdraws from the competition or does not report for a match, or refuses to play or leaves the ground before the regular end of the match without the authorisation of the referee, it shall be considered loser and shall be eliminated for good from the current competition.”
Article 84 establishes the sanction in the event that this violation is confirmed: “The team which contravenes the provisions of articles 82 and 83 shall be eliminated for good from the competition. This team will lose its match by 3-0 unless the opponent has scored a more advantageous result at the time when the match was interrupted, in this case this score will be maintained.”
Can Senegal appeal this decision?
The decision to overturn the result in favor of Morocco and award them the 2025 AFCON final, despite Senegal’s on-field 1-0 victory, comes from the highest continental sporting authority, the CAF Appeal Board. This means that within CAF’s internal hierarchy, there is no further avenue for appeal.
However, that does not mean Senegal’s case is completely closed. They now have the option to request a review of the decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Based in Lausanne, Switzerland, CAS is the world’s top sports tribunal and has the authority to issue a final ruling on soccer-related disputes such as this one.
