The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has begun hearing the Senegal Football Federation’s appeal against the Confederation of African Football (CAF) decision to award the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title to Morocco.
The hearing opened on Thursday morning in Lausanne, Switzerland, with representatives of Senegal, Morocco and CAF, along with lawyers acting for each party. Proceedings are expected to continue until 16:00 local time at the latest (17:00 Mecca time and 14:00 Rabat time).
Senegal originally beat Morocco 1-0 in the final, which was played in January. CAF later ruled that the title should be awarded to Morocco, citing the withdrawal of Senegal’s players after they objected to Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala’s decision to award a penalty to Morocco.
The case is being heard by a three-member panel made up of French professor Gerald Simon, German professor Ulrich Haas and Italian professor Luigi Fumagalli.
Before the hearing began, CAS director general Matthieu Reeb said the proceedings were taking place with all parties represented.
“The hearing started with representatives of all the parties present: Senegal, Morocco and the Confederation of African Football, with every party represented by lawyers,” Reeb told media in Lausanne, in comments reported by French network RMC.
“We have a relatively strict timetable, which was agreed with the parties themselves.”
Reeb added that the hearing could finish at 15:00, 15:30 or 16:00 local time, but said he did not expect it to continue beyond 16:00.
Decision not expected immediately
The CAS director general said the panel would not issue its ruling immediately after the hearing, as the arbitrators would need time to assess the case and prepare their decision and legal reasoning.
“Our aim is to issue the decision as quickly as possible after the hearing,” he said.
“I do not think the decision will be issued today or tomorrow, and I am almost certain of that. As for the next stage, we may have to wait until this afternoon to receive further information from the court, so that I can provide you with more details.”
He said the process could take “a few days or even a few weeks” if the arbitrators decided to produce a full decision setting out the legal grounds.
Reeb also acknowledged the frustration of supporters in both countries and across the continent, who have been waiting for a final outcome since the disputed final.
“I fully understand that the wait for Moroccan and Senegalese fans, as well as all African supporters, has been very long,” he said.
He stressed that both the timetable for the overall proceedings and the schedule for Thursday’s hearing had been agreed with all the parties.
“As the final body responsible for sporting justice, the aim of the Court of Arbitration for Sport is to issue a reasoned decision as soon as possible after today’s hearing,” Reeb said.
The ruling will determine whether CAF’s decision stands or is overturned, reopening the question of who should be recognised as champions of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
