A senior Confederation of African Football (CAF) official has issued a rare public apology to Morocco’s national team over the chaotic Africa Cup of Nations 2025 final, saying the rules were not applied correctly and Morocco was treated unfairly.
Samir Sobha, president of the Mauritius FA and a member of CAF’s executive committee, told The Guardian he wanted Morocco’s federation to accept an apology.
“I want to plead with the Moroccan FA to forgive us for the injustice done to them. The rules have not been respected, as they should have been in this match. They were robbed,” Sobha said.
Sobha argued that Senegal should have faced automatic punishment once they left the field. “It’s clear that after the Senegalese team left the field, all the players should have been sanctioned with a yellow card,” he said. At the same time, he stressed the trophy should not be taken away because “what happened has happened.”
His remarks revive debate about the controversial final played in Rabat on January 18, when Senegal controversial win against Morocco 1-0 after extra time.
The match descended into chaos late in regulation after Morocco were awarded a clear penalty following a VAR review. Senegal’s players walked off in protest, causing a 14‑minute delay before returning.
When play resumed, Brahim Diaz missed the penalty, and Senegal later won in extra time through Pape Gueye’s 94th‑minute goal. Reports said captain Sadio Mane helped convince his teammates to come back onto the pitch.
CAF condemned the “unacceptable behaviour” in the final, said it was reviewing footage, and promised action through its disciplinary bodies.
Weeks later, however, the federation issued sanctions that observers deemed shocking and unfair, , including only a five‑match ban and $100,000 fine for Senegal coach Pape Thiaw, a $615,000 fine for the Senegal federation, and two‑match suspensions for Iliman Ndiaye and Ismaila Sarr.
