Senegal stripped of afcon 2025 title as Morocco awarded victory amid corruption claims

The decision by CAF’s appeal jury has sent shockwaves through the football community, with media outlets describing it with disbelief as “not an April Fools’ joke” and “the joke of the century.” Two months after a chaotic final, the title won by Sénégal has been revoked. A statement from the governing body confirmed it had decided to “declare the national team of Sénégal forfeit during the final,” officially recording the result as a 3-0 victory for Morocco, despite the Lions of Teranga’s 1-0 win after extra time.

The Senegalese federation is fighting back, while the government has demanded an international inquiry. “Sénégal unambiguously rejects this unjustified attempt at dispossession,” declared executive spokesperson Marie Rose Khady Fatou Faye.

Regulations cited in controversial ruling

Furthermore, the Senegalese federation has condemned what it calls “an unjust, unprecedented, and unacceptable decision that discredits African football.” It has also stated its intention to pursue “an appeal procedure before the Court of Arbitration for Sport” in Lausanne, Switzerland, “in the shortest possible time.”

FSF Secretary General Abdoulaye Sow vowed that the trophy would not be handed over to Morocco. “CAF is rotten, and the global reactions to this decision confirm total indignation… The fight is far from over. I want to reassure all Senegalese people. Sénégal has right and victory on its side. The cup will not leave the country.”

The issue originated on January 18, during a tense final match. In added time, with the score still 0-0, Morocco was awarded a controversial penalty for a foul on Brahim Diaz. The decision enraged the Senegalese players, who felt they had been denied a penalty at the other end just moments before.

In response, Senegalese coach Pape Thiaw instructed his players to leave the pitch at the Prince Moulay Abdellah stadium in Rabat. Following a 15-minute interruption marked by confusion and unrest in the stands, the match resumed. Brahim Diaz failed to convert the penalty. The game was ultimately decided by a superb strike from Pape Gueye, which secured what was believed to be Sénégal’s championship title.

However, nearly two months later, CAF’s appeal jury convened and ruled that Sénégal had forfeited the match. The official decision stated, “The CAF appeal jury, in application of article 84 of the CAN regulations, declares the national team of Sénégal forfeit during the final of CAN 2025, the result being homologated with a score of 3-0 in favor of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation.”

Article 84, which details the sanction, is linked to the infraction described in Article 82: “if, for any reason, a team leaves the field before the regulatory end of the match without the referee’s authorization, it will be considered the loser and will be definitively eliminated from the current competition.”

Wydad Casablanca case cited as precedent

In a statement, the Moroccan football federation acknowledged the decision in favor of the Atlas Lions, clarifying that its appeal “was never intended to contest the sporting performance of the teams… but solely to request the application of the competition’s regulations.”

A source familiar with the Moroccan Federation noted a precedent for such a ruling. In 2019, Espérance Sportive de Tunis was awarded the CAF Champions League title three months after players from Wydad Casablanca left the field during the final to protest a VAR system failure.

In late January, CAF’s disciplinary jury had already issued sanctions, including fines of several hundred thousand euros, to both nations’ federations for unsportsmanlike conduct, without changing the final result at that time. Separately, the appeal for 18 Senegalese supporters, who have been imprisoned since the final on “hooliganism” charges, was postponed to March 30.