The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially updated its records to name Morocco as the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) champions.
This decision to name Morocco as the 2025 AFCON champions comes after CAF’s Appeal Board ruled that Senegal’s temporary walk-off during the match constituted a formal forfeit.
The judgment meant that Senegal was stripped of the 2025 AFCON title and was awarded to Morocco.
The administrative reversal stemmed from a heated moment in the 90th minute of the final played on January 18, 2026.
After a penalty was awarded to Morocco, the Senegalese squad, led by coach Pape Thiaw, briefly left the field in protest.
While they eventually returned to finish the game and score the winning goal in extra time, CAF cited Articles 82 and 84 of its regulations, which state that any team leaving the pitch without referee authorization is deemed to have lost 3–0.
In its media statement, CAF said, “The Senegal National Team is declared to have forfeited the Final Match… with the result of the Match being recorded as 3–0 in favour of the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football.”
CAF President Patrice Motsepe also defended the process, stating that no nation will be favoured and emphasising the need to uphold the integrity of the competition’s regulations.
However, the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) has not taken the news lightly, describing the move as “unjust and unprecedented.”
The Federation also announced a move to drag the case before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland. Senegalese officials argue that because the match was completed and the trophy was physically presented to them in Rabat, a retrospective forfeit is legally unsound.
”The Olympic Committee and our legal team are ready to fight this at CAS so that the sporting victory can be returned to its rightful owners,” stated FSF representatives.
Meanwhile, despite Senegal’s protests, checks on the CAF website on Monday showed that Morocco is now listed as the champions of the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON 2025.
Senegal recorded as runners-up while the Super Eagles of Nigeria are placed third.
The development also comes after the captain of Morocco’s men’s football team, Achraf Hakimi has publicly rejected CAF’s verdict on the 2025 AFCON title.
Following a controversial administrative ruling that stripped Senegal of its trophy, the Paris Saint-Germain star made it clear that results in football are earned on the pitch.
Hakimi who stressed that Senegal is the rightful winner also called on his teammates to reject CAF’s verdict on the 2025 AFCON title.
Hakimi said: “My mum told me to reject the AFCON trophy.
“I’m officially rejecting it and hope my teammates do (the) same. We had a chance but failed to win.”
Hakimi acknowledged the result, stressing that Senegal were worthy winners.
He cautioned against actions that could undermine their achievement.
He said: “That’s football. Sometimes you win and lose. Senegal beat us fairly and deserved it. It will be unfair to ruin their joy after the hard work.”
Also, several veteran African football players had joined the debate, kicking against CAF’s decision.
