CAS rules out same-day verdict in Senegal AFCON appeal

The Court of Arbitration for Sport has ruled out delivering a verdict on the day of Senegal's appeal hearing over the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title, BBC Sport reported on Thursday. The hearing is scheduled for October 8, but the court has not indicated when its final decision will be issued.

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According to BBC Sport, the proceedings will be private at the parties' request. A three-member arbitration panel led by French sports-law specialist Gerald Simon will consider the challenge. Senegal is seeking to overturn the ruling that removed its title after it beat tournament host Morocco 1-0 in extra time in January.

The decision under challenge was published by the Confederation of African Football on March 17. CAF's Appeal Board upheld the Moroccan federation's appeal and set aside an earlier Disciplinary Board decision. It concluded that the Senegal team's conduct breached Article 82 of the competition regulations and applied Article 84 to record a 3-0 forfeit victory for Morocco. The board also upheld Morocco's protest and dismissed the remaining requests for relief.

CAF's statement separately addressed several disciplinary matters arising from the final. It confirmed a misconduct finding against Morocco's Ismaël Saibari but amended his punishment to a two-match CAF suspension, with one match suspended. His $100,000 fine was removed. These sanctions were listed separately from the decision changing the result of the match.

The board also maintained Morocco's responsibility for the conduct of ball boys, while reducing the associated fine to $50,000. A $100,000 fine for interference around the video-review area remained in place, and the penalty for a laser incident was reduced to $10,000, according to CAF's published statement.

BBC Sport reported that the dispute followed Senegal players leaving the field during the final before play resumed. Pape Gueye subsequently scored the winning goal. Senegal's federation rejected CAF's reversal and took the case to CAS. Thursday's hearing does not itself settle that challenge: the court has explicitly said the decision will come later.