Senegalese report claims Morocco faces setback in AFCON final legal battle

A Senegalese news website has claimed that Morocco suffered a setback during a hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over the disputed Africa Cup of Nations final against Senegal, although the reported developments have not been officially confirmed.

SeneNews said its account was based on information allegedly leaked from a closed session in Lausanne, Switzerland, where the legal dispute between the two African football nations is being considered.

The claims concern the referee’s report and an alleged second document that Morocco reportedly sought to use in presenting its account of the final. However, the allegations remain unverified, and no court ruling has been established by the information provided.

Dispute over alleged second referee report

According to SeneNews, the Moroccan delegation attempted to rely on a second report attributed to Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala to present a different account of the events surrounding the final.

The website claimed that the official referee’s report recorded the match being stopped in the 97th minute before play resumed approximately 12 minutes later.

It further alleged that the report did not state that Senegal had withdrawn from the match or should be considered to have forfeited it.

SeneNews also claimed that representatives of the Confederation of African Football questioned whether the alleged second report existed, leading to that line of argument being excluded from the discussions.

These details, however, have not been independently confirmed and should be treated as claims attributed to the Senegalese publication.

Referee influence allegations raised

The report also claimed that Morocco’s legal representatives questioned whether Ndala could have been influenced by his compatriot Olivier Savary, chairman of the African Union’s Referees Committee.

According to the website, no public evidence was provided to establish the validity of the alleged influence.

The claims form part of SeneNews’s account of the closed hearing and do not constitute established findings by CAS.

Senegal relies on principle of on-field decisions

SeneNews reported that Senegal’s defence maintained that decisions concerning events on the pitch and the outcome of a match should generally stand unless corruption or bad faith can be demonstrated.

The principle places emphasis on the finality of refereeing decisions relating to match facts, although its application to the dispute will depend on the relevant regulations and the court’s assessment.

Neither the alleged arguments presented during the hearing nor the website’s account should be mistaken for a final determination of the case.

CAS decision remains decisive

The legal dispute over the AFCON final remains unresolved in the information provided, with the final decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport set to determine the outcome of the case.

Until an official statement or ruling confirms the developments described by SeneNews, the reported setback for Morocco remains an unverified claim rather than an established legal outcome.

The case remains significant for African football because it concerns the circumstances surrounding the continental final and the rules governing the determination of its result.