Senegal have been sensationally stripped of their Africa Cup of Nations title after an unprecedented ruling by the Confederation of African Football (Caf). Morocco have been awarded a 3-0 win in the final, which was held in Rabat in January, following a protest by the Senegal coaching staff and players.
The incident occurred when Senegal's head coach, Pape Thiaw, and some of his players left the pitch for 15 minutes in protest at a penalty awarded to Morocco. They returned after being implored to by captain Sadio Mané. Brahim Díaz's subsequent spot-kick was saved, and the match went to extra time, where Pape Gueye scored the winning goal for Senegal.
Caf's appeal board ruled that Senegal had forfeited the match under article 84 of the competition regulations, with the result recorded as 3-0 in favour of Morocco. The board also found that Senegal had infringed article 82 through the conduct of its team. Senegal are expected to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Initially, Caf had imposed fines exceeding $1m and bans on players and officials from both teams but left the result unchanged. Lyon defender Moussa Niakhaté, who played in the final, criticised the decision on Instagram, posting a picture of himself holding the trophy with the caption: 'Come and get them. They are crazy.'
Almost a million supporters had lined the streets of Dakar to celebrate Senegal's second Afcon title a day after the final. Morocco, who had not won the competition since 1976 and were heavy favourites as hosts, stated that their appeal was solely to request the application of regulations, not to challenge sporting performance.
