Legal Expert Warns Senegal's AFCON 2025 Appeal Against Morocco Likely to Fail

Senegal's legal team faces a formidable, almost insurmountable challenge in their bid to overturn the Confederation of African Football's (CAF) decision regarding the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations final, according to sports lawyer Romain Bizzini.

As Senegal prepares to take its case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), Bizzini, an expert with experience in FIFA, CAF, and CAS proceedings, stated that the legal foundation for CAF's ruling is exceptionally strong.

He believes the decision to strip Senegal of the title and award it to Morocco is clearly supported by the organisation's own regulations.

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"The decision is based on Articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON regulations," Bizzini explained in comments reported by Marca. These articles specify that a team refusing to continue a match or leaving the field without the referee's authorisation is deemed to have forfeited.

"That team will lose 3-0," the lawyer added, highlighting the automatic penalty prescribed by CAF's rules. This indicates that CAF was not creating a new precedent or making a political judgment, but rather applying existing laws governing its competitions.

Addressing criticism over the two-month delay in reaching a verdict, Bizzini noted that CAF regulations do not set a strict deadline for an appeal decision, allowing a broader six-month window for investigations.

He suggested the case's complexity and the need to hear from all involved parties likely contributed to the extended timeline.

Looking ahead to the CAS hearing, Bizzini assessed Senegal's prospects as slim. "A strict application of the rule should lead CAS to confirm the decision," he said.

While acknowledging that Senegal could argue the match was played to its conclusion, challenging the notion of a forfeit, he maintained that this line of defence is unlikely to prevail.

Despite potential mitigating factors Senegal might present, Bizzini concluded, "Senegal’s chances of success are quite low."

He also dismissed the possibility of replaying the final as legally unrealistic, reiterating that the regulations are clear: "The sanction is a 3-0 defeat."