The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) acknowledged that it will provide its ruling “as soon as possible” after Senegal lodged the appeal against their disqualification from being the Africa Cup of Nations champions.
Senegal scored a 1-0 win against Morocco in the final on January 18. Nonetheless, the match ended in a scandal when Senegal players forfeited the field as a method of protest after a penalty in stoppage time had been granted to the home team. The players did return later. However, the incident led to the opening of the disciplinary management phase.
Following an appeal by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, the Confederation of African Football declared that Senegal had indeed abandoned the game. Consequently, the mathematical respect of the final was reversed to a 3-0 win in favour of Morocco, hence giving them the title.
Senegal is now disputing the decision in CAS and is requesting that the initial result be restored. Matthieu Reeb, CAS director general, pointed out the importance of the case but also promised that all involved parties will be heard impartially.
There is currently no official schedule, but a former CAF disciplinary chief, Raymond Hack, shared his view that the case may last as long as six months, which would mean that it could coincide with the World Cup.
