By Achile Danjuma
The Senegalese Football Federation has rejected the decision of the Confederation of African Football Appeal Board awarding the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title to Morocco and confirmed it will challenge the ruling at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Morocco were on Tuesday crowned champions of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after the Confederation of African Football Appeal Board overturned the result of the final against Senegal, ruling that the West African side forfeited the match following a walk-off during the game in Rabat on January 19.
CAF stated that “the Senegal national team is declared to have forfeited the final match of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025, with the result recorded as 3–0 in favour of the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football.”
The decision followed a protest by Morocco after chaotic scenes late in the final, when Senegal players briefly left the pitch after a disallowed goal and a penalty awarded to the hosts, an action the appeal board ruled fell under Articles 82 and 84 of the competition regulations on misconduct and forfeiture.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Fédération Sénégalaise de Football said it had taken note of the decision delivered by CAF’s Appeal Committee in case DC23316, which followed a complaint filed during match 52 of the TotalEnergies AFCON Morocco 2025 final between Senegal and Morocco.
“The Senegalese Football Federation has today taken note of the notification of the decision rendered on March 17, 2026 by the Appeals Committee of the Confederation of African Football, in the context of case DC23316,” the statement read.
The federation said the appeal board declared admissible the protest lodged by the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football and overturned the earlier decision of the CAF Disciplinary Board, citing a procedural flaw in the initial hearing.
“With this decision, the CAF Appeals Board declared the appeal of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation admissible and accepted it.
“In doing so, the board overturned the decision rendered by the CAF Disciplinary Board, on the grounds that the appellant’s right to be heard had not been respected during the initial proceedings,” the FSF said.
According to the statement, the appeal committee ruled that the conduct of the Senegal national team fell under Articles 82 and 84 of the Africa Cup of Nations regulations, leading to the forfeiture decision.