Morocco to Receive AFCON Title Following Disqualification of Senegal
In January, the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final witnessed Senegal triumphing over Morocco on the pitch, ending with a 1-0 scoreline. However, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) later awarded the title to Morocco after a formal complaint was filed. This unusual situation has now led to an appeal being lodged with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (TAS) by the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF), seeking a resolution to this contentious issue.
The TAS has announced that it will deliver its verdict regarding the dispute between the FSF, CAF, and the Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) by the end of November 2026. This announcement was made through a statement released on Monday, providing an update on the ongoing legal proceedings. The Senegalese federation contested its disqualification on the grounds that the CAF had ruled in favor of Morocco following a complaint preemptively lodged by them regarding the conduct during the final match.
The hearing took place behind closed doors on October 8, with a panel of judges from the TAS, which included French judge Gérald Simon, Italian judge Luigi Fumagalli, and German judge Ulrich Haas. The arbitration panel has since commenced deliberations and is in the process of drafting a comprehensive ruling, which will include legal reasoning, known as the 'TAS sentence'. This procedure is expected to take several weeks, with the final decision anticipated by late November 2026.
During the AFCON final held on January 18 in Rabat, Senegal was initially declared the winner. However, on March 17, the CAF's appeals jury disqualified Senegal, validating Morocco's complaint based on articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON regulations. The ruling followed an incident where the Senegalese team left the field in protest against a referee's decision, only to return to play. Consequently, Morocco was declared the winner with a score of 3-0 after the disqualification was upheld.
As reported by lesoir.be.
