Former African and World Footballer of the Year George Weah has strongly condemned the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) decision to strip Senegal national football team of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title and award it to Morocco national football team, warning that the ruling has dealt a significant blow to the credibility of African football.
In a strongly worded statement, Weah—winner of the 1995 Ballon d’Or—argued that CAF’s decision lacks both sporting and legal justification, citing FIFA’s Laws of the Game.
“This decision has further scarred and blemished African football, undermining confidence in the fairness, consistency, and integrity of football on the continent,” he said.
The controversy stems from the AFCON final played in Rabat on January 18, which was marred by a dramatic protest from Senegal’s players. The team briefly walked off the pitch following two contentious refereeing decisions—a disallowed goal and a penalty awarded to Morocco—before being led back onto the field by captain Sadio Mané.
Morocco’s Brahim Díaz missed the resulting penalty, and Senegal went on to secure a 1-0 victory after extra time. However, CAF’s appeal board later nullified the result and awarded Morocco a 3-0 win, citing Senegal’s conduct during the match.
Weah insisted that once a referee allows play to resume and completes the match, the result should stand. He noted that the referee’s report classified the incident as a temporary stoppage rather than a forfeit, with recommendations for sanctions limited to on-field infractions.
“Once play is allowed to continue and the match is completed, the result obtained on the field must stand,” Weah said.
“Football must be decided on the pitch, not re-decided after the final whistle.”
The former Liberian president also dismissed circulating claims suggesting he supported CAF’s ruling, calling them “blatantly false” and urging those spreading such reports to desist.
Senegal have since announced plans to challenge the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), a move Weah fully backs.
“I call on the Court of Arbitration for Sport and other relevant authorities to move decisively so that this travesty does not stand,” he said.
Criticism of CAF’s decision has also come from former Nigeria captain William Troost-Ekong, who described the ruling as a betrayal of the tournament’s integrity.
“When I first heard the news that the result of this year’s AFCON final had been overturned, I thought it was a joke,” he told The Athletic. “When I realised it was actually real… it just made me feel quite sad.”
Troost-Ekong warned that the decision represents a major setback for a competition that has worked to build global respect.
“This progress has been undermined by the shocking decision from the CAF appeal board. We have taken two steps backwards,” he said, adding that such rulings risk creating uncertainty for future tournaments.
Support for Senegal has extended beyond former players. South Africa’s Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie said his country is prepared to offer legal assistance in the CAS appeal.
“Senegal are the African champions because football games are not won in the boardroom,” he said. “We will stand by Senegal and assist them.”
Meanwhile, the controversy has sparked wider debate and misinformation, including false reports that Guinea national football team were seeking to reopen the outcome of the 1976 AFCON. Guinea’s football federation has since denied any such move, calling the claims inaccurate and without official basis.
As the dispute heads toward CAS, both Weah and Troost-Ekong have warned that the long-term damage to African football’s reputation could be significant, raising concerns about precedent and the growing perception that results can be decided off the pitch.
Boluwatife Enome
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