Idrissa Gana Gueye has spoken out following the decision to strip Senegal national team of their Africa Cup of Nations 2025 title, urging perspective after a controversial ruling handed victory to Morocco.
The Senegal midfielder, who played a key role in what was initially a 1-0 final victory, reacted after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Appeals Committee overturned the result, citing a breach of competition rules by Senegal during the match.
“Titles, trophies, medals… all of that is fleeting,” he posted on social media.
“The Senegalese people have shown what they are. That’s Teranga. We know what we experienced that night in Rabat. “And this, please don’t please us, God willing.”
His comments come amid widespread reaction across African football following CAF’s decision to annul Senegal’s win from the final played on 18 January in Rabat.
On the pitch, Senegal had secured victory after extra time, with Pape Gueye scoring the decisive goal following a dramatic contest.
However, the match was overshadowed by a late incident in normal time when Senegal’s players refused to continue play after Morocco were awarded a stoppage-time penalty with the game still goalless.
The protest led to a delay of 17 minutes before play resumed.
Brahim Diaz saw his penalty saved once the match restarted, before Senegal eventually found the breakthrough in extra time.
Despite the on-field result, the outcome was challenged, prompting a review by CAF’s Appeals Committee.
The governing body ruled that Senegal had violated Article 82 of the Africa Cup of Nations regulations, which addresses situations where a team refuses to play or leaves the field without authorisation from the referee.
CAF stated that “through the conduct of its team” Senegal had breached the rules, leading to the application of Article 84, which allows for sanctions including forfeiture of the match.
As a result, Morocco were declared winners of the tournament.
The decision has effectively erased Senegal’s triumph from the official record, transforming what had been a hard-fought victory into a regulatory defeat.
While the ruling settles the official outcome of the tournament, debate is likely to continue over the circumstances surrounding the final and the interpretation of CAF’s regulations.
For Senegal, they have announced their decision to head to the Court of Arbitration for Sports, describing the ruling as “unfair, unprecedented and unacceptable”.
