Referee Finality vs. Competition Rules: CAF Appeal Board Declares Morocco 2025 AFCON Champions

On January 18, 2026, Senegal seemingly triumphed over Morocco 1-0 in a tightly contested championship final of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (“AFCON”). However, nearly two months to the day after the match was played, Morocco has now been crowned champions and Senegal deemed to have forfeited the match following a decision from the Confederation of African Football (“CAF”) Appeal Board.

The Match

The AFCON final, played at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, Morocco, was mired with controversy, highlighted by the final minutes of regulation play. With the match tied 0-0, Morocco was awarded a late penalty in stoppage time. The Senegalese team did not agree with the referee’s decision and showed their frustration by leaving the pitch towards their dressing room. It was only after an almost 15-minute delay that Senegal’s players returned, and the referee restarted the match. The penalty was still awarded.

Unfortunately for the Moroccan team and their home fans, Brahim Diaz’s subsequent spot kick was saved. The match ultimately went to extra time, where Senegal’s Pape Gueye scored the match winner shortly after the restart. At the final whistle, celebrations ensued for the Senegal fans, whereas the local Moroccan fans made their displeasure known. Ultimately, Senegal star Sadio Mané lifted the AFCON trophy.

The Appeal

The matter did not end with the final whistle or the lifting of the trophy. Following the final, the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football (“FRMF”) filed a formal appeal with the CAF, challenging the validity of the result based on Senegal’s conduct in leaving the field of play, alongside several other measures of discipline imposed on the FRMF and its players due to events occurring during the match.

While the CAF’s Disciplinary Board initially dismissed the challenge, the CAF’s Appeal Board set aside the Disciplinary Board’s findings and granted FRMF’s appeal.^[1] The Appeal Board concluded that Senegal’s actions breached the AFCON Regulations, finding that leaving the pitch without the referee’s authorization amounted to a refusal to play within the meaning of the competition rules.

Under Article 82 of the AFCON Regulations,^[2] a team that refuses to play or leaves the field without authorization before the end of a match is deemed to have lost the match. Article 84 provides that where such a breach occurs, the match is recorded as a 3-0 administrative defeat unless the opposing team has already achieved a more favourable score.

Applying those provisions, the Appeal Board ruled that Senegal had forfeited the final. As a result, two months after the match was played, Morocco is officially deemed to have won the match 3-0 and is now recognized as AFCON champions.

The Appeal Board also reduced discipline imposed on Moroccan player Ismaël Saibari and the FRMF for incidents which occurred during the match.

Next Steps

The matter may not be concluded, however. The Appeal Board’s decision is appealable to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (“CAS”) in Lausanne, Switzerland. The Fédération Sénégalaise de Football has now announced their intention to pursue an appeal, under which the CAS would review the CAF Appeal Board’s decision.^[3]

A question which will likely be raised before the CAS is whether it was appropriate for the Appeal Board to review the referee’s on-field decision to continue with the match and restart play once the players returned. This would require the consideration of both the International Football Association Board Laws of the Game^[4] and the AFCON Regulations.

The Laws of the Game make clear that the referee is the ultimate decision-maker on the pitch and that their decision is final on matters of fact. While certain decisions, including suspensions or fines, are regularly reviewed by governing bodies in football, it is extraordinary for an on-field decision to be reviewed by a governing body, in turn altering the ultimate outcome of the match, other than in instances of match-fixing or where the integrity of the competition is in question.

The AFCON Regulations similarly provide at Article 16.9 that all matches shall be played “in compliance with the Laws of the Game” and at Article 43.7 that the decisions taken by the referee “on the ground during the match on matters of fact shall not be subject to protests in any case.”

However, as described above, Articles 82 and 84 provide that if a team leaves the pitch before the end of the match without authorization by the referee, they shall be deemed to have lost the match 3-0. As a result, it remains to be seen if Articles 82 and 84 shall supersede the Laws of the Game and Articles 16.9 and 43.7 of the AFCON Regulations, or if it will be decided that the referee’s decision was not on matters of fact as stipulated in Article 43.7. This is all to say, the AFCON saga is likely not yet over.

Football teams and fans are used to trusting that the referee’s decision is final. However, this decision by the CAF Appeal Board underscores that when the governing laws of a tournament are breached, a referee’s decision may be subject to review. This highlights the need for clearly drafted regulations and the role of arbitration in maintaining fairness and integrity across professional and amateur sport alike.

The Sports, Media & Entertainment Group at Aird & Berlis LLP will continue to monitor the next steps in relation to this matter, including any potential challenge to the CAS. For any inquiries, please contact the authors or a member of the group.