The Confederation of African Football (CAF) president Patrice Motsepe has broken his silence on Senegal’s stripping of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title.
The CAF Appeals Board ruled that the Teranga Lions breached Article 84 of AFCON regulations, leading to the forfeiture of the final.
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The board found that Senegal forfeited the match after coach Pape Bouna Thiaw led a protest over a late penalty awarded to Morocco, briefly instructing players to leave the pitch before captain Sadio Mané intervened.
Morocco’s Ibrahim Díaz later took the penalty, but it was saved by goalkeeper Édouard Mendy, with Senegal going on to win 1–0 after extra time on the pitch.
However, Wednesday’s ruling overturned the result and awarded Morocco a 3–0 victory.
Speaking for the first time on the issue, Motsepe defended the integrity of CAF’s judicial processes.
“I previously expressed my extreme disappointment with the incidents that took place in the final,” Motsepe said.
“The important thing about what happened in that final is that it undermines the good work CAF has done over many years to ensure integrity, respect, ethics, governance and the credibility of the results of our football matches.
“When I became president, one of the major concerns was the impartiality, independence and respect of referees and match commissioners. A lot of good work has been done, but there continues to be suspicion because it’s a legacy issue.
“Another important matter these incidents brought to the fore is the independence and respect of our judicial bodies.”
Following the judgment, the Senegal Football Federation confirmed it will appeal the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
“I’m told Senegal is going to appeal, which is very important,” Motsepe added. “Every one of the 54 countries has a right to appeal not only at CAF but also at the level of CAS, and we will respect the decision taken at the highest level.”
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