One of the most explosive AFCON finals of all time has been overturned by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) – Senegal have been stripped of their 2025 title, which has been awarded to Morocco instead.
Senegal initially secured a 1-0 win after extra time in Rabat in January but this has now been annulled. The dramatic incident happened late in normal time when the scores were level and referee, after consultation with VAR, pointed to the spot for a penalty to Morocco. Senegal were incensed and walked off the pitch in protest for about 17 minutes before returning to the play the match.
Morocco missed the penalty and it was then in extra time Senegal scored to thought they had won an historic match but Morocco filed an appeal. CAF’s Appeals Board studied the match again and applied articles 82 and 84 of their regulations which punish teams for leaving the pitch without permission. The verdict was harsh; Senegal were deemed to have forfeited the match and result was declared a 3-0 victory for hosts Morocco.
There has been an explosion of fury, with Senegalese football federation rejecting the decision as unfair and planning to take it to the Court of Arbitration for sport. Many fans and critics are saying there is no justification for overturning Senegal’s victory because they did return to play the match, arguing a short walk-off shouldn’t decide an entire match when the team did return to finish.
Some are supporting CAF on the grounds they had to uphold their rulebook but the dispute is now raising further concerns about African football and especially its officials. The game already featured controversies regarding disallowed Senegalese goals and confrontational encounters. However, Morocco have claimed second AFCON title- and their first for almost half a century, while the result has turned Senegalese success into one of the most talked-about incidents of the entire tournament.
The CAF’s decision stands for now but the debate has already spread to the Court of Arbitration for sport.
