The Confederation of African Football – CAF Appeal Board has nullified Senegal’s victory at the recently concluded final match of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) against Morocco. The decision was announced by the CAF Appeals Board on March 17, 2026, forfeiting the match by 3-0.
The forfeiture came after a successful appeal by Morocco, which alleged that Senegal violated the rules of the game that govern AFCON after the Lions of Teranga walked off the pitch in protest to the referee’s decision to award Morocco a penalty in the last minute.
On January 19th, during the Africa Cup of Nations final match that was played in Rabat, the capital of Morocco, Senegal scored a goal in the 3rd minute of stoppage time, which the referee ruled out for a soft foul. The referee later awarded a penalty to Morocco in the 90+8 minute, sparking protests from the Senegal team who walked off the pitch in protest and went to the dressing room, except Al Nassr player Sadio Mane.
After pausing the match for more than 8 minutes, Sadio Mane convinced players to come back and have the penalty taken. Play was resumed the penalty was taken by Brahim Diaz in the 90+24 minute, who went on to miss it. The match ended Morocco 0 -1 Senegal after extra time, with a goal scored by Pape Gueye in the extra time.
CAF Appeal Board Decision on Senegal vs Morocco game
CAF Appeal board found that Morocco’s petition against Senegal is ‘admissible’ and upheld, and the match was forfeited by 3 goals to nil.
CAF found out that Senegal breached the rules that govern AFCON articles 82 and 84 by walking off the pitch before the official time or without the permission of the referee.
Article 82 of the rules governing AFCON says “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. The same shall apply for the teams previously disqualified by decision of CAF.”
CAF has therefore decided to invoke Article 84, which calls for such scenarios to have the match forfeited 3-0, awarding the Morocco National Football Team the AFCON 2025 trophy almost two months after the final match was played.
Article 84: “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. The Organising Committee may adopt further measures.”
The controversial decision was received with mixed reactions, with some sports commentators raising fears that the decision might hurt the credibility of CAF and African football.
Read also: How AFCON 2027 Could Transform Uganda’s Tourism and Economy
“Although AFCON rules state walking off or refusing to play for a prolonged period is grounds for elimination, the decision to strip Senegal of the AFCON title two months after their trophy lift is a bad look for CAF.” Give Me Sport Journalist Ben Jacobs commented, arguing that such decisions should be taken on the field by match officials but not after two months.
What is left for Senegal? Can They Appeal?
Senegal will have two options. The easiest is to accept the decision of the CAF Appeal Board, accept the punishment, and hand over the trophy. This will make Senegal a runner-up in the competition, and they will receive all the remuneration of runners-up, including prize money.
The second option, however, the Senegal National Team can contest the decision by the CAF Appeal Board and appeal the case in the Court of Arbitration – CAS, Lausanne, Switzerland, seeking the court to reinstate their on-field 1-0 victory.
The Court of Arbitration focuses on procedural fairness and application of rules to determine whether articles 82 and 84 were correctly interpreted, given the fact that players returned on the pitch, resumed the match, and it was played up to full time.
The Senegal Football Federation hasn’t stated the way forward and whether to accept the ruling or appeal in CAS. But as it stands, Morocco is the 2025 AFCON Champions.
