The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Thursday opened a hearing into Senegal’s appeal against the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) decision to strip the country of its Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title and award it to Morocco.
The hearing in Lausanne, Switzerland, comes nearly 10 months after Pape Gueye scored the extra-time winner that secured Senegal’s victory over tournament hosts Morocco following a chaotic end to regulation time.
Several Senegalese players had walked off the pitch in protest after Morocco were awarded a late penalty. However, Brahim Diaz missed the spot-kick after Senegal’s players returned to the field nearly 20 minutes later.
In March, CAF overturned the result, awarding Morocco a 3-0 victory and the AFCON title.
Thursday’s opening session lasted more than five hours behind closed doors, with CAS warning that proceedings could continue for an extended period.
“I know that the wait for supporters, as much the Senegalese and Moroccan ones as all African fans, has been very long,” CAS general manager Matthieu Reeb told reporters.
He added that the hearing could last “days or even weeks”.
The Moroccan delegation declined to speak to reporters, while Senegalese Football Federation president Abdoulaye Sow expressed hope that the case would be decided in accordance with sports law.
He said he wanted the law to be upheld “for the dignity and honour of Africa”.
Why CAF Stripped Senegal of the AFCON Title
Following their defeat in the final, Morocco appealed to CAF, arguing that Senegal had breached rules prohibiting teams from leaving the field of play without the referee’s authorisation.
CAF subsequently ruled in Morocco’s favour, overturning Senegal’s victory and awarding the North African country a 3-0 win.
Senegal strongly condemned the decision, describing it as the “most blatant administrative robbery in the history of our sport”.
The country’s football authorities also paraded the trophy before supporters in Paris at the end of March, despite CAF’s ruling.
Referee’s Decision Could Be Key
Thibault Ulrich, a sports law researcher at the University of Lausanne, described CAF’s ruling as “extremely strict”, arguing that it failed to recognise the decision of Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala to allow the match to continue.
The International Football Association Board (IFAB), which oversees the Laws of the Game, has a rule suggesting that a referee’s decision to continue a match cannot be overturned, even if the decision was mistaken.
CAS rules also generally favour respecting referees’ decisions unless there is evidence that an official acted corruptly or in bad faith.
These principles could prove significant as the arbitration panel considers Senegal’s appeal against CAF’s decision.
Senegal Calls for Corruption Investigation
The dispute has also raised questions about CAF’s internal procedures.
On 18 March, the Senegalese government called for an investigation into suspected corruption within the continental football governing body.
The call came amid scrutiny of CAF’s decision-making process. Two weeks before ruling in Morocco’s favour, the organisation dismissed Djiboutian lawyer Yassin Osman Robleh, who had spent six years overseeing the integrity of its procedures.
CAF did not publicly disclose the reasons for his dismissal.
The CAS proceedings will determine the outcome of Senegal’s challenge, with supporters in both countries and across Africa awaiting a final decision on who should hold the AFCON title.
