CAF Rules Senegal Lost Final, Awards Title to Morocco by Default
Morocco has been unexpectedly crowned champions of the Africa Cup of Nations after an appeals tribunal overturned Senegal’s victory in a controversial final played in January.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced that its appeals committee ruled Senegal was “declared a loser by forfeiture” in the final, effectively changing the 1-0 extra-time win for Senegal to a 3-0 default victory for the host nation, Morocco.
The dramatic turn of events stems from the final match on January 18 in Rabat, where Senegal players – led by coach Pape Thiaw – left the field in protest during stoppage time, remaining off the pitch for 15 minutes. Fans also attempted to invade the field after a penalty was awarded to Morocco that appeared set to decide the contest.
When play resumed, Morocco’s Brahim Díaz stepped up to take the penalty – a controversial, softly chipped “Panenka” attempt – which was saved by goalkeeper Édouard Mendy. Senegal then scored the only goal of the match in extra time.
Tensions had already been high minutes earlier when a Senegal goal was disallowed just before the penalty was awarded to Morocco.
In the second minute of stoppage time, a potential go-ahead goal for Senegal was called back for a foul committed by Abdoulaye Seck; however, television replays showed minimal contact with Morocco defender Achraf Hakimi.
An initial disciplinary hearing saw CAF impose fines exceeding $1 million, as well as sanctions on players and officials from both Senegal and Morocco, but the match result remained unchanged – until now.
The case could be subject to further appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), based in Lausanne, Switzerland.
CAF cited Article 82 of its tournament regulations to justify the ruling, a clause that had not been applied in the initial hearing.
That article states that “if, for any reason, a team withdraws from the competition, fails to appear for a match, refuses to play or leaves the field of play before the end of the regulation time of the match without the authorization of the referee, it will be considered a loser and will be definitively eliminated from the competition in progress.”
The decision on Tuesday awarded Morocco their first African title since 1976 and denied Senegal a second crown – their second in three editions, having also lifted the trophy in 2021.
Any appeal Senegal files with CAS would typically take around a year to reach a verdict, long after both teams have competed in the 2026 World Cup, jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Senegal has been drawn into a group alongside France, Norway, and the winner of a playoff match to be played this month, which could be Iraq. Their matches against France and Norway will be played at MetLife Stadium, near New York.
Morocco, meanwhile, will face Brazil, Scotland, and Haiti, with an opening match – also at MetLife Stadium – against Brazil.
Under coach Walid Regragui, Morocco became the first African nation to reach the semifinals during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Regragui stepped down two weeks ago after facing criticism for failing to win the Africa Cup of Nations title, stating that “the team needs a new impetus before the World Cup.”
Now, Morocco will travel to the United States as the reigning champions of Africa.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
