The Confederation of African Football's appeal to award the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations to Morocco instead of Senegal At the center of a heated controversy over the jury's decision, its president Patrice Motsepe finally broke his silence on Wednesday evening.
The South African leader confirmed the organisation's stance, while also reminding everyone that Senegal has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to challenge the decision. He stressed the importance of respecting CAF's procedures and judicial bodies in handling this sensitive matter.
Statement by Patrice Motsepe (rewritten version)
“I have been informed of the decision made by the CAF Appeal Commission in relation to the appeal filed by Morocco in relation to the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations Finals. I have previously expressed my deep disappointment at the events that took place during this match.
What happened during this final is particularly worrying, as it undermines the important efforts CAF has made over the years to ensure the integrity, ethics, transparency and credibility of the results of our competitions.
These events highlight the long road ahead to overcome suspicion and fully restore trust, which has been further weakened by some of the practices of the past. Since I took over at CAF, we have prioritized impartiality, independence and respect for referees and match officials.
Considerable progress has been made, but an atmosphere of mistrust persists. It is therefore essential to ensure the independence and respect of our judicial bodies. To achieve this, we have adopted a new approach in the appointment of their members: each federation and each of CAF's six regional areas are invited to propose recognized legal experts and lawyers.
Thus, the Disciplinary and Appeal Committees are now composed of some of the most respected judges and legal experts on the continent to ensure credible, transparent and impartial decisions.