After the Confederation of African Football Appeals Board has reversed the outcome of the Championship against Senegal, Morocco has been declared winners of the Africa Cup of Nations in 2025.
In Rabat, after an eventful finish when Senegal players left the field protesting during extra time; the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football (FRMF) filed an official complaint resulting in today’s decision.
The decision issued by the Appeals Board on 17th March 2026, stated: “Senegal has lost the match; the official result of the match will therefore be 3-0 in favour of Morocco”.
“The appeal initiated by the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football (FRMF) is found acceptable in form and is to be granted,” the press release went on to say.
The match has been decided through a walk-off.
An incident towards the end of the match where VAR reviewed a penalty awarded to Morocco for a foul on Brahim Díaz was the basis of the appeal and the reason that the Senegal bench protested and exited the field of play.
The Appeals Board concluded that Senegal had acted contrary to the rules of the competition.
In addition, the CAF Appeal Board sees the conduct of the Senegalese team to fall within the scope of Articles 82 and 84 of the Africa Cup of Nations Regulations (the ‘Regulations’).
The CAF ‘Judging Panel’ has published its Judgement in relation to the award of the title to Morocco claiming that it had rights to the title as determined by the CAF Disciplinary Board.
As a consequence, the CAF Appeal Board has ruled contrary to the ruling made by the CAF Disciplinary Board. Senegal has therefore been stripped of the championship.
In the ruling the CAF Judging Panel also determined that the FSF committed a violation of Article 82 of the Africa Cup of Nations Regulations through its team’s behaviour.
The CAF Judging Panel declared the Senegalese team to have forfeited the match and recorded the result as a 3–0 victory for the FRMF.
Thus Morocco will be awarded the Africa Cup of Nations Championship in what is widely viewed as a highly controversial result.
Additional sanctions
The Board of Appeals has made determinations regarding multiple additional disciplinary issues regarding misconduct that arose during the course of play in the match.
Ismaël Saibari (Midfielder from Morocco) has been found guilty of misconduct and his punishment reduced from originally three games to simply two games with the lesser of the two being conditional. The original sanction of a total of $100,000 is currently annulled.
The Moroccan Federation has also been penalized for numerous violations, many of which include using laser lights during the match; interfering within the VAR review area; and other violations related to team ball boys (boy assistants). For some infractions, sanctions were decreased; while for others, sanctions remain as originally determined.
An ending that is historic yet debatable
The ruling closes the matter with a very contentious ending and creates an important case study for future enforcement of competition laws across the continent.
Expect considerable debate throughout African football due to this ruling, particularly with regard to the situation surrounding Senegal’s exiting the pitch; and very strict enforcement of competition rules by the tournament organizing body, while Morocco celebrates a great historic accomplishment at home.
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