This is a genuine seism that hit African football this week. The CAF (African Confederation of Football) decided to change the name of the winner of the African Cup of Nations 2026. While Senegal had grabbed the trophy on the pitch a couple of months ago before Morocco (1-0) in a game that was highlighted by a bunch of incidents and events, the biggest one being the decision of the Senegalese team to leave the pitch after a referee’s decision, the instance that rules football in Africa finally made up their mind and designed Morocco, the host country, as the winner of the tournament.
The Jury of Appeal of the CAF gave a positive response to the Moroccan Federation of Football on March 17 and reattributed the trophy to the host country. This is an incredible decision 2 months after the final that enables Morocco to grasp the African Cup a second time after 1976. The Confederation enforced the article 84 of the CAN regulation and concluded that Senegal had to pull out of the final. Morocco wins 3-0 on the turf.
Indeed, the article 84 of the CAN regulation asserts that a team that does not respect the articles 82 and 83 is definitely eliminated from the competition. According to those articles, it is forbidden to leave the pitch before the end of the game, what Senegal did after the penalty kick granted to Morocco whereas a goal had been refused to Pape Thiaw’s team a few minutes before.
Considered as an unfair and shameful decision by the Senegalese side, the reattribution of the trophy to Morocco is leaving nobody indifferent, 2 months after the final and the great joy of the Lions that celebrated the victory with the people of Dakar. The decision of the instance to change their mind 2 months later, and not on the spot, is hard to handle for the winners on the pitch. Senegal claimed they were not going to give up. A procedure of appeal will be launched before the TAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) in Lausanne, Switzerland. The chapter is not closed yet.
Guillaume Mahot