The Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) on Wednesday responded to the Confederation of African Football (CAF), vowing not to return the Africa Cup of Nations trophy they won against Morocco on January 18, 2026, at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, Morocco.
The reaction comes after a ruling on Tuesday night in which CAF stripped the Lions of Teranga of the title, 58 days after they won it.
Speaking on Wednesday from Dakar, the Secretary General of the Senegalese FA, Abdoulaye Seydou Sow, told the public broadcaster Radiodiffusion Télévision Sénégalaise that the ruling was a shame for Africa. He insisted that Senegal would not back down and that the trophy is going nowhere.
“This is a travesty; this decision is based on absolutely nothing. It has no legal foundation. The president of the federation will get in touch with the lawyers; we will engage with the appropriate authorities, and then we will go to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which will issue the final decision,” Sow said, encouraging the Senegalese people to have no doubt that the truth and the law are on Senegal’s side.
“The trophy is going nowhere. I want to reassure all Senegalese people that Senegal has the right and victory is on its side. The cup will not leave the country. The FSF president is in discussions with all those involved. The fight is far from over,” Sow also told Le Soleil.
On Tuesday, CAF awarded Morocco a 3–0 win in an unprecedented ruling after the appeal board said Senegal had “forfeited the final” when their head coach, Pape Thiaw, and some players left the pitch for 15 minutes in protest after Morocco were awarded a late penalty.
The final had been mired in controversy. Senegal protested against an injury-time penalty by briefly walking off the pitch before returning to play. They went on to save Brahim Diaz’s Panenka penalty and eventually won 1–0 after extra time thanks to a powerful strike from Pape Gueye.
At an earlier disciplinary hearing, CAF had imposed fines of more than $1 million and bans on Senegalese and Moroccan players and officials but left the match result unchanged.
However, following an official complaint by the Moroccan Football Federation, CAF launched an investigation. On Tuesday, the appeal board ruled that Senegal had infringed Article 82 of CAF regulations, declaring the team to have forfeited the final, with the result officially recorded as 3–0 in favour of Morocco.
In response, the Senegalese FA issued a strongly worded statement denouncing what it called “an unfair, unprecedented and unacceptable decision that casts a shadow over African football.”
The federation added that, in defence of its rights and the interests of Senegalese football, it will initiate an appeal procedure before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne.
CAF’s appeal board meeting that ruled against Senegal and in favour of Morocco was chaired by Justice Roli Daibo Harriman of Nigeria, with Faustino Varela Monteiro of Cabo Verde serving as vice-chairman.
Other members of the board included Moez Ben Tahar Nasri of Tunisia, Moses Ikanga of Namibia, Hamoud T’feil Bowbe of Mauritania, Mohammed Robleh Djama of Djibouti, and Asogbavi Komlan of Togo.