A little over 10 days after one of the most chaotic Africa Cup of Nations finals, CAF has handed out more than $1 million in fines and suspended a number of players and officials from both finalists.
The Senegal Football Federation was hit with a $615,000 fine for what CAF described as “unsporting conduct” by players and technical staff, breaching principles of fair play, loyalty and integrity. Coach Pape Thiaw was banned for five of Senegal’s six 2027 AFCON qualifying matches and fined $100,000 for “bringing the game into disrepute.” For their roles in the post-match unrest, players Iliman Ndiaye and Ismaila Sarr will miss Senegal’s first two qualifiers later this year for “unsporting behavior towards the referee.”
The melee in Rabat erupted after Senegal walked off in protest when Morocco were awarded a late penalty following a VAR review, moments after Senegal had a goal ruled out. Fans tried to storm the pitch, clashes involving journalists were reported, and after a 15-minute delay Morocco missed the penalty. Senegal then went on to win in extra time. Morocco coach Walid Regragui said the incident had given African football a shameful image.
Morocco’s federation was fined $315,000 for unsporting and improper conduct by players, coaches and supporters. CAF allocated $200,000 of that penalty to incidents involving stadium ball boys who attempted to seize a towel used by Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy on a wet night, apparently to distract him. Another $100,000 was levied after players and technical staff invaded the VAR review area and obstructed the work of DR Congo referee Jean-Jacques Ndala. Moroccan supporters were fined $15,000 for using lasers to try to disrupt Senegalese players.
On the personnel side, Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi was banned for two matches, with one of those suspended, while Ismael Saibari received a three-match ban; both were cited for “unsporting behavior.”
CAF rejected Morocco’s appeal to annul the match result and declare them the winners on the basis of Senegal’s walk-off.
Both nations remain scheduled to play at the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada: Senegal were drawn in Group I with France, Norway and the winners of the intercontinental play-offs (Bolivia, Suriname or Iraq), while Morocco are in Group C with Brazil, Scotland and Haiti. Morocco will also be a 2030 World Cup co-host and is slated to host the Women’s U17 World Cup annually for five straight years.
Edited by: Matt Pearson