CAS ruling confirms Al-Jamarik’s progress to face Chabab Belouizdad

Mauritanian club Al-Jamarik have won their legal dispute with Hafia Conakry after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected the Guinean side’s appeal against the Confederation of African Football (CAF) decision to replay their African Confederation Cup first preliminary-round tie.

Al-Jamarik announced the ruling in an official statement on Monday, saying CAS had dismissed Hafia Conakry’s appeal, lodged on 8 October 2026. The court also upheld the decision issued by CAF’s Club Competitions Organising Committee on 14 September.

That decision classified the original postponement as a case of force majeure and ordered the second leg to be played again.

The ruling confirms Al-Jamarik’s qualification for the second preliminary round of the 2026-27 African Confederation Cup, where they will meet Algerian club Chabab Belouizdad.

The dispute began when Al-Jamarik were unable to travel to Guinea for the second leg, which had been scheduled for 11 September. The flight due to carry the Mauritanian delegation was involved in an incident, preventing the team from reaching Conakry.

CAF subsequently treated the circumstances as force majeure and decided that the match should be rescheduled.

The rearranged fixture was played on 19 September, when Al-Jamarik won 1-0. That result secured a 3-2 aggregate victory, after the first leg in Nouakchott had ended in a 2-2 draw.

Hafia Conakry disputed CAF’s decision, arguing that Al-Jamarik’s failure to appear had resulted from organisational shortcomings rather than circumstances beyond the club’s control. The Guinean side therefore appealed to CAS.

On 16 October, CAS temporarily postponed the meetings between Al-Jamarik and Chabab Belouizdad while it considered the legal challenge. The final rejection of Hafia Conakry’s appeal has now brought the case to an end and formally confirmed the Mauritanian club’s place in the next round.