New clash between Senegal and Morocco over AFCON

The AFCON final was back in January 18th, but it feels like the game was yesterday. The actual match and everything that happened on and off the field was the source of hundreds of reports and the hype about the most important African competition lasted well into February. And then, when finally everything settled in, CAF rose the dust with it’s decision to strip Senegal of the title and give it to Morocco. And we are now in the middle of the whirlwind again. The Lions of Teranga were outraged while CAF moved quickly and already announced Morocco as the new champion. But Senegal is prepared for a ‘war’. The Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) has officially confirmed receiving an appeal from the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) regarding the AFCON title that the Lions of Teranga were stripped of by CAF. But they didn’t stop there. They already confirmed that the trophy will not be given to Morocco. Senegal also plan to parade the Africa Cup of Nations trophy before their game against Peru in Paris on Saturday, while Morocco threatens to sue them.

Senegal Footbal Federation’s social media account posted a timetable for events around Saturday's friendly against Peru at the Stade de France which included a trophy parade.

"Faced with what amounts to the most blatant and unprecedented administrative robbery in the history of our sport, the Senegalese Football Federation refuses to accept this as inevitable. Senegal will not bend the knee and will not compromise its values. Our fight now transcends the football pitch” FSF president Abdoulaye Fall said at a media conference in the French capital.

Senegal lodges an appeal, champion of Africa to be determined in court

On the other side is Morocco. Mourad Elajouti, president of the lawyers' club in Morocco, first published a statement to defend the "end of thuggery on African pitches". Then, he posted a series of messages threatening legal action against the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) and the Stade de France should the Africa Cup of Nations trophy be displayed before the friendly match against Peru on Saturday.

"In the absence of a suspensive ruling from the CAS, the display of this trophy constitutes usurpation of the title and a manifestly unlawful disturbance (Article 835 of the Code of Civil Procedure). Any continuation of the event will give rise to legal action for damages based on Article 1240 of the Civil Code (tort liability). We reserve the right to seek an expedited court order for the trophy to be placed under judicial sequestration (Article 1961 of the Civil Code). In the absence of a contractual or legal right of possession, the object of the dispute must be placed in the custody of a bailiff" wrote Elajounti.