AFCON
AFCON: Ethiopia stun Egypt 
Without star forward Mohamed Salah, record African champions Egypt were stunned by Ethiopia at the Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe, losing 2-0 in their second Group D match of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Salah missed the game due to injury and his absence was felt as first half goals from Dawa Hotessa and skipper Shemeles Bekele earned Ethiopia a well deserved victory.
Hotessa broke the deadlock after 21 minutes with a sliding finish that beat keeper Mohamed Abou Gabal. The forward stretched in to direct the ball home after some fine work from Abubaker Nasser who had done the donkey work on the right to lay in a cross.
Just before the goal, Ethiopia had tested Gabal with Gatuoch Panom’s shot from distance which the keeper calmly collected.
Nasser came inches close to making it 2-0 for Ethiopia in the 24th minute when he ran on to a through ball from the middle, but his shot past the keeper hit the upright and rolled away.
He thought he had scored in the 34th minute when he tapped home a cross from the right, but the referee’s flag was up for offside.
The Walia Ibex however finished the half with the second goal five minutes to the break through Bekele’s thumping shot from inside the box. The skipper had started the move himself, spreading to Amanuel Gebremichael who played him through on goal.
After the goal Egypt made a surprising decision to throw in three changes, Magdy Afsha, Amr el Solia and Ayman Ashraf all coming off for Ibrahim Adel, Kamal Omar and Mohanad Lasheen.
Despite the changes, Ethiopia still forced them to play deep in the second half and their ambition to get a way back into the match wasn’t as successful.
Malawi 0-1 Guinea
Elsewhere at the General Lansana Conte Stadium in Conakry, Naby Keita scored late into added time as hosts Guinea beat Malawi 1-0 to storm to their first victory in the qualifiers.
The game seemed to be heading for a draw until Keita struck the winner for the home side, earning a well deserved win after putting in the pressure and looking more hungry.
With the victory, Guinea move to third in the standings below Malawi, with all teams in the group sitting on three points.
Both sides had some chances in the opening half. Keita had a go at goal in the 27th minute when he stretched out his feet to connect to a cross from the right but it went wide.
In the 34th minute, midfielder Amadou Diawara had a chance for Guinea when he rose at the backpost to connect to a corner, but he headed just wide.
At the tail end of the first half, Malawi had a chance when Khuda Muyaba broke away on the right and into the box, but the effort was blocked by the hawk eyed Guinean keeper.
It remained a close encounter in the second half. The best chance fell on Guinea, with Serhou Guirassy missing a golden opportunity as he slashed a shot just wide off a cross from the left two minutes after the restart.
Substitute Ilaix Moriba also had a chance with an 85th minute freekick from range, but he struck it inches over the bar.
The late drive bore fruit, with Keita sending the stadium into frenzy with his late winner.
Senegal’s government on Wednesday called for an international investigation into what it said was suspected corruption within the Confederation of African Football (CAF) after the country was stripped of its 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title.
CAF’s appeals board ruled on Tuesday that Senegal had “forfeited” the January final by briefly leaving the pitch in protest during stoppage time, converting a 1-0 extra-time win into a 3-0 default defeat in favour of hosts Morocco.
In a statement, the government condemned CAF’s ruling as “grossly illegal and profoundly unjust” and called for the opening of an international independent investigation to address what it described as suspicions of corruption inside CAF’s leadership.
CAF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Senegalese Football Federation earlier said it would appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, calling the ruling unprecedented and unacceptable and vowing to file its challenge in Lausanne “as soon as possible.”
-Reuters
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Senegal have condemned the decision to strip them of the Africa Cup of Nations title, labelling it “unfair, unprecedented, and unacceptable”, and saying it casts a shadow over African football.
Morocco were declared African champion on Tuesday after the Confederation of African Football’s Appeal Board upheld their protest and found Senegal’s walk-off during the final on January 18 were grounds for them to be disqualified and the match result declared 3-0 in favour of the hosts.
Senegal won the final in Rabat with an extra-time goal, but not before staging a 14-minute walk-off after a penalty was awarded against them in stoppage time at the end of the regulation 90 minutes.
The protest was instigated by coach Papa Bouna Thiaw, subsequently handed a lengthy ban, and saw Senegal’s veteran striker Sadio Mane emerge as a hero as he attempted to get his teammates back onto the field.
Once Senegal returned to the pitch, the referee allowed play to continue with Morocco squandering the last-gasp penalty and the encounter then going to extra time, with midfielder Pape Gueye netting the 94th-minute winner.
However, CAF’s Appeal Board said that by walking off, Senegal contravened tournament regulations and forfeited the game.
“The Senegalese Football Federation denounces this unfair, unprecedented, and unacceptable decision, which casts a shadow over African football,” it said in a statement on Wednesday.
“To defend its rights and the interests of Senegalese football, the federation will initiate an appeal as soon as possible before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne.”
The Swiss-based CAS had to intervene in 2019 when Moroccan club Wydad Casablanca walked off in the second leg of the African Champions League final, also protesting against VAR.
In that case, they refused to play on, and the referee declared opponents Esperance as winners, but CAF’s executive committee then surprisingly ordered a replay.
Esperance took the matter to CAS and were declared champions, with CAF embarrassingly rebuked, opens new tab for attempting to override the referee’s decision.
The decision by Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala to continue with the Cup of Nations final in January, rather than stop it and declare Morocco winners after Senegal’s walk-off, will likely feature strongly in any arguments for a reinstatement of Senegal as champions.
The Laws of the Game state the referee’s decision is final.
“No one could have imagined such a statement two months after the final,” said veteran coach Claude Le Roy, who managed Senegal between 1988 and 1992.
“For years, all the refereeing decisions have been flouted by the CAF,” he said on French television.
-Reuters
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By Kunle Solaja.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) Appeal Board has awarded the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title to the Morocco national football team after ruling that the Senegal national football team forfeited the final match of the tournament.
In a landmark decision announced on Wednesday, the CAF Appeal Board invoked Article 84 of the AFCON Regulations to declare Senegal to have forfeited the final played at the Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025, with the result officially recorded as 3–0 in favour of Morocco.
The ruling followed an appeal lodged by the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football, challenging the earlier decision of CAF’s Disciplinary Board.
Appeal Upheld, Earlier Decision Overturned
CAF confirmed that Morocco’s appeal was admissible and upheld, leading to the overturning of the Disciplinary Board’s initial ruling.
The Appeal Board found that the conduct of the Senegal team fell within the scope of Articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON Regulations, and that the Fédération Sénégalaise de Football, through its team’s actions, had breached the competition rules.
As a result:
- Senegal was declared to have forfeited the final match
- Morocco was awarded a 3–0 victory
- All other claims by Senegal were dismissed
Sanctions and Additional Rulings
The CAF Appeal Board also issued several decisions relating to incidents during the final:
Player Misconduct
- Moroccan midfielder Ismaël Saibari was found guilty of misconduct.
- His punishment was reduced to a two-match suspension, with one match suspended.
- A previously imposed $100,000 fine was cancelled.
Ball Boys Incident
- Morocco was held responsible for the conduct of the ball boys.
- The fine was reduced to $50,000.
VAR/Referee Interference
- The Appeal Board upheld a $100,000 fine against Morocco for interference around the VAR review area.
Laser Incident
- The fine imposed on Morocco was reduced to $10,000.
All other appeals and motions were dismissed.
Major Implications
The decision represents one of the most dramatic rulings in AFCON history, effectively overturning the outcome of a continental final through regulatory enforcement.
By applying Articles 82 and 84, CAF reinforced its position on disciplinary compliance and match conduct, with the forfeiture ruling handing Morocco the title without the need for a replay.
The ruling also underscores CAF’s willingness to impose severe sanctions, including match forfeiture, where teams are found to have breached competition regulations.
Final Outcome
- Morocco: Declared AFCON 2025 champions (3–0 awarded win)
- Senegal: Final forfeited due to regulatory breaches
The decision brings a definitive end to the dispute surrounding the AFCON 2025 final, with Morocco officially crowned champions of Africa.
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