Senegal is now entering a new phase in the case of the CAN 2025 final. Following the decision of the CAF Appeals Jury to declare the Lions of Teranga forfeited against Morocco, with an official score of 3-0 in favor of the FRMF, the maneuvering room for the Senegalese Football Federation has significantly diminished. The statement published on Tuesday, March 17, confirms that the CAF appeals jurisdiction has annulled the initial disciplinary decision and upheld the application of Articles 82 and 84 of the competition regulations.
From a legal standpoint, the main recourse still available to Senegal now leads to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), based in Lausanne. The CAF statutes indeed stipulate that only the CAS is competent to examine appeals directed against a decision rendered in the final instance by a legal body of the CAF. The text also specifies that such an appeal must be filed within ten days from the notification of the decision.
Another important element: a potential appeal by Senegal to the CAS would not automatically suspend the effects of the contested decision. The CAF statutes explicitly state that an appeal to the CAS does not have a suspensive effect, meaning that, unless a specific measure is granted later, the decision of the Appeals Jury remains applicable during the procedure. In clear terms, at this stage, Morocco legally retains the benefit of the 3-0 victory until a potentially contrary ruling is issued.
If Senegal decides to proceed to the CAS, it would then have, in the event of an unfavorable outcome, an even narrower option: to contest the arbitral award before the Swiss Federal Tribunal. However, this route does not constitute a new appeal on the merits. The CAS itself reminds that its awards can only be challenged before the Swiss courts for very limited reasons, primarily procedural or related to jurisdiction.
