The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) confirmed on Wednesday that it has received an appeal filed by the Senegalese Football Federation against the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the Royal Moroccan Football Federation.
The appeal concerns a CAF decision issued on March 17, 2026, which ruled that the Senegalese national team lost the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations final in Morocco by forfeit, awarding the Moroccan national team a 3-0 victory.
The Senegalese Federation’s appeal, registered with the court on March 25, 2026, seeks to overturn the CAF decision and declare Senegal the winner of the Africa Cup of Nations. The appeal also requests an immediate suspension of the deadline for submitting the appeal brief until CAF provides the full reasoned decision, as the March 17 announcement included only the operative part of the ruling.
An arbitration panel will be appointed by the court to review the case, after which a procedural timetable will be established. According to the court’s procedural rules, the appellant (Senegalese Federation) has twenty days to submit an appeal brief containing legal arguments, while the respondents (CAF and the Moroccan Federation) will be granted an additional twenty days to submit a defense brief.
At this early stage of the proceedings, and taking into account the Senegalese Federation’s request to suspend deadlines, a precise schedule or hearing date cannot yet be determined.
In this context, Matthieu Reeb, Director General of the Court of Arbitration for Sport, stated: “The Court of Arbitration for Sport is fully equipped to adjudicate this type of dispute with the assistance of expert and independent arbitrators. We understand the passion of the teams and fans to know the final decision, and we will ensure the arbitration proceedings are conducted as quickly as possible, while respecting the right of all parties to a fair hearing.”
