By Irikefe Oghenetega Victor
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has formally updated its official records, naming host nation Morocco as the champions of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and placing Nigeria in third position.
The change follows a ruling by CAF’s Appeal Board on March 18, 2026, which overturned the on-field result of the dramatic final played on January 18 in Rabat. Senegal had initially emerged victorious with a 1-0 win in extra time, courtesy of Pape Gueye's decisive goal.
However, CAF’s Appeal Board ruled that Senegal's walk-off constituted a forfeit under Article 84 of the AFCON Regulations, declaring the match forfeited and recording the result as a 3-0 victory for Morocco.
According to the official CAF statement “The Confédération Africaine de Football (“CAF”) Appeal Board decided that in application of Article 84 of the Regulations of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), the Senegal National Team is declared to have forfeited the Final Match of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), with the result of the Match being recorded as 3–0 in favour of the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football (FRMF)."
Senegal's football federation (FSF) has strongly condemned the decision as "unfair and unacceptable," branding it a discredit to African football, and has confirmed its intention to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). A final verdict from CAS could take up to a year to be delivered.
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