Khaberni - Abdoulaye Thiam, President of the Senegalese Football Federation, confirmed that there is no looming threat to Senegal's win of its second title in the African Cup of Nations, legally speaking, despite the Appeals Committee's decision to withdraw the title and declare Morocco the winner with a 3-0 score.
The Senegalese Football Federation has referred the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport "CAS" seeking to overturn the decision and declare Senegal the winner of the title.
Senegal had beaten Morocco 1-0 in the final of the African Cup of Nations held on January 18 in Rabat, in a match that saw Senegal players refuse to continue playing after a penalty was awarded in stoppage time, moments after a goal for the "Lions of Teranga" was disallowed.
After the stoppage, the Senegalese players returned to the field at the request of their teammate Sadio Mane, and Edouard Mendy, Senegal’s goalkeeper, saved the penalty shot by Ibrahim Diaz, before Pape Gueye scored the winning goal in extra time.
Abdoulaye Thiam in an exclusive interview with the Senegalese News Agency said: Legally, there is no threat to the title.
He added: We have submitted a statement to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. We were waiting for the reasoning from the Confederation of African Football, which we received on Friday. I am confident about this decision. Legally, this title cannot be withdrawn from Senegal.
Thiam continued: Senegal remains the champion of Africa. Everything else is just details. The most important thing is winning on the field, and that is what we did.
He also assured that the decision will not affect the morale of the players before the start of the 2026 World Cup, scheduled to be held from June 11 to July 19 in America, Canada, and Mexico.
The President of the Senegalese Federation concluded: This situation is an additional motivation, it strengthens unity, there is strong unity within the federation, among the players, technical staff, officials, and the Senegalese people, this unity will push us towards competing for the world title.
