CAF president Patrice Motsepe defended the Confederation of African Football’s decision to strip Senegal of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 title and award it to Morocco, stressing the importance of integrity, impartiality, and respect for CAF’s judicial processes.
Motsepe spoke on Wednesday night, acknowledging the controversy that has engulfed African football since the chaotic final in Rabat. “I’ve been informed of the ruling by the CAF Appeals Board concerning the appeal by Morocco relating to the AFCON Morocco 2025 final match,” he said, adding that he had previously expressed his “extreme disappointment with the incidences that took place at the final match.”
The drama in the final started on January 18 when Senegal and Morocco played out a tense 0–0 draw that descended into controversy in added time. Senegal appeared to score, but the goal was ruled out for a foul, and shortly afterward a highly contentious penalty was awarded to Morocco after a VAR review, prompting Senegal’s coach, Pape Thiaw, to lead his players off the pitch in protest. The walk‑off halted play for more than a dozen minutes amid crowd unrest and pitch invasions. The match eventually resumed, Morocco missed the penalty, and Senegal went on to win 1–0 in extra time on the field.
However, after a lengthy review, the CAF Appeal Board ruled that Senegal’s temporary departure from the field violated Articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON regulations, declaring that the team had forfeited the final and recording the result as a 3–0 victory for Morocco.
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Motsepe acknowledged the troubling scenes and how they “undermine the good work that CAF has done over many, many years to ensure that there’s integrity … and credibility of the results of our football matches.” He described the perception of bias and distrust as a “legacy issue” that CAF must continue to address.
He also explained the steps taken to reinforce the independence of CAF’s disciplinary and appeals bodies, saying, “We invited each member association to give us names of respected judges and respected lawyers,” underscoring the federation’s efforts to ensure that decisions are made by qualified, impartial professionals.
Motsepe stressed that every nation retains the right to pursue appeals both within CAF and at the highest level with CAS, noting, “Every one of the 54 nations in Africa have a right to pursue their appeals and their advanced interests and we will adhere and respect the decision that’s taken at the highest level.”
He reiterated that no country should receive preferential treatment, saying, “A critical factor is that not a single country in Africa will be treated in a manner that is more preferential, or more advantageous, or more favourable than any other country on the African continent.”
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