The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has formally dismissed a protest from the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football (FRMF) seeking to strip Senegal of their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations championship. Moroccan officials filed the appeal following the high-stakes final in Rabat, where Senegal’s squad briefly exited the pitch to protest a late penalty decision in favor of the hosts.
The FRMF argued that this walk-off violated Articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON Regulations, which dictate that any team refusing to play or leaving the field without the referee’s consent should forfeit the match 3-0 and face disqualification.
Despite the chaotic scenes that saw play halted for nearly 20 minutes, the CAF Disciplinary Board ruled on Wednesday that the protest lacked sufficient merit to alter the match outcome. The governing body’s investigation concluded that the circumstances of the brief interruption did not justify a retroactive forfeiture. Consequently, Senegal remains the official winner of the tournament, having secured their second continental title through a decisive extra-time goal by Pape Gueye.
The match, which ended 1-0 after 120 minutes of intense football, featured a missed penalty by Morocco’s Brahim Díaz and a disallowed goal for the Teranga Lions before Gueye’s winner. While CAF upheld the result, they simultaneously imposed heavy financial and sporting sanctions on both nations for their respective roles in the evening’s unrest. This final decision brings a conclusive end to the administrative fallout of the Morocco 2025 tournament, cementing the standings on the pitch as the final word.
The governing body confirmed the dismissal in an official statement: “The CAF Disciplinary Board rejected the protest lodged by the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football regarding alleged violations by the Fédération Sénégalaise de Football of Articles 82 and 84 of the Regulations of the Africa Cup of Nations, relating to the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 Final.”
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