Senegal’s AFCON title appeal heard by CAS as decision nears

The Court of Arbitration for Sport has heard Senegal’s appeal against the decision to award Morocco the Africa Cup of Nations title, with a ruling expected within days. The hearing ended Thursday, October 8, at the sports court, according to Reuters. The dispute concerns the January final in Rabat: Senegal won 1-0 after extra time on the pitch, but African football authorities later recorded a 3-0 forfeiture victory for Morocco.

France 24 reported the continuing title dispute on October 9 and said a verdict was expected within days. CAS Director General Matthieu Reeb gave no fixed date after Thursday’s hearing. Until the court decides the appeal, the challenge to the ruling that made Morocco champions remains unresolved.

Why Senegal and Morocco dispute the AFCON title

The final’s decisive controversy began late in regulation time, when a penalty was awarded against Senegal. Reuters reported that Senegal’s players walked off the pitch for 14 minutes, with several going to the dressing room, before play resumed. Morocco missed the penalty. Senegal then scored in extra time to finish the match with a 1-0 win.

That on-field result did not stand as the official outcome. On March 17, the Confederation of African Football’s Appeal Board ruled that Senegal had forfeited the match because of its team’s conduct. Applying Article 84 of the tournament regulations, the board recorded a 3-0 result in favour of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation. That reversal is the decision Senegal has taken to CAS.

What happened at the CAS hearing

Reuters reported that lawyers for the parties presented their cases to a three-member CAS panel behind closed doors on Thursday. The panel was chaired by French sports law expert Gerald Simon, alongside Luigi Fumagalli and Ulrich Haas. The hearing concluded that day, but the court did not announce an outcome. The closed proceedings mean the cited reporting does not establish the detailed arguments put to the panel.

Reeb told reporters that CAS aimed to deliver a reasoned award as soon as possible after the hearing. He said he expected a decision a few days later, rather than on the hearing day or the next day. His comments pointed to a short wait but did not amount to a specific publication date or a signal of which side would prevail.

Reeb also said the timetable and procedural calendar had been set with the agreement of the parties, who knew the timeline. His account addressed the wait since the final, but left the court’s substantive decision open. Reuters reported that Senegal lodged its CAS appeal on March 25, after CAF’s March ruling, and that the arguments were heard on October 8.

What each side has said after the hearing

Senegal General Secretary Abdoulaye Sow told reporters outside the hearing that his side was confident. He said the important thing was for sports law to be upheld and for the match to be put to rest ‘for the sake of dignity and for Africa,’ according to Reuters. His remarks expressed Senegal’s position; the CAS panel has yet to deliver its decision.

Morocco’s delegation did not speak to the media after the hearing, Reuters reported. Morocco’s formal position in the record cited here is reflected in its successful appeal to CAF: the federation’s protest was upheld, and CAF’s Appeal Board changed the recorded result to a 3-0 win for Morocco. The court must now decide Senegal’s challenge to that outcome.

What CAS will decide next

The next expected development is CAS’s reasoned award. Reuters reported Reeb’s expectation of a decision within days, while France 24’s October 9 report also said a verdict was expected shortly. Neither account gave an exact release date. The reporting establishes that the hearing is complete and the title decision is pending; it does not establish how the panel will rule.

CAF’s March statement also dealt with separate matters from the final, including a sanction involving Morocco player Ismaël Saibari and decisions concerning ball boys, interference around the video review area and a laser incident. Those rulings formed part of CAF’s published appeal decision. The central title question before CAS, as reported by Reuters, is Senegal’s challenge to the forfeiture that replaced its 1-0 on-field victory with a 3-0 result for Morocco.