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

From now on, the matter of the reigning football champion of Africa is in the hands of the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS). The body based in Lausanne, Switzerland, has officially confirmed receiving an appeal from the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) regarding the decision of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to strip the Lions of Teranga of the title they won on January 18.

Senegal beat the hosts Morocco 1-0 in the trophy match thanks to Pape Gueye's extra-time goal, but the Atlas Lions were awarded a 3-0 victory because of the incidents that preceded the goal.

Following referee Jean-Jacques Ndala's decision to award Morocco a penalty kick deep in added time, a number of Senegalese players and staff, including manager Pape Thiaw, left the pitch and went to their locker room in protest.

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Sadio Mane stayed and eventually convinced everyone to return, though the damage had obviously been done, as leaving the pitch ultimately cost Senegal the trophy.

Still, the final verdict has yet to come, as Morocco remains the champion until the case is closed.

The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) praised CAF's decision, calling it a triumph of rules and integrity. On the other hand, the Senegalese consider it unjust and detrimental for the reputation of the entire "mother continent".

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They claim the match was regularly ended and argue that CAF misinterpreted the rules, highlighting that even the Moroccans did not initially complain following the match.

Hence, everything is now in the court's hands, though this whole scandal cannot be good publicity for African football.