Senegalese fans in disbelief after AFCON victory overturned

Senegalese football fans are in disbelief after their championship win was overturned on appeal.

Two months after the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) in a bombshell ruling has annulled Senegal’s victory.

The appeals committee of African football’s governing body has declared Morocco the winner by default. And the decision has outraged the Senegalese.

“It’s a disappointment, because the anger is still there," student El Hadji Diasse told Africanews on Wednesday. "If they’ve just told us they’re going to take away what we’ve earned with dignity as Senegalese, personally, it touches me deep in my heart.”

Another student, Lamine Ndiaye, vows that Senegal's fans will "resist with every ounce of our strength."

"It's a scandal," says coach Saliou Diop.

The CAF Appeals Committee relied on Articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON regulations to declare Senegal forfeit and therefore the loser by a score of 3-0.

The Senegalese government is calling for an international investigation of corruption at CAF. But the damage has already been done, says sports journalist and analyst Pape Alassane Ndiaye.

“Honestly, this is a scandal, and it does a disservice to the Confederation of African Football. This is a major embarrassment, it’s a humiliation; it lays bare the flaws in our football, and we certainly didn’t need this.

"The CAF had already been frequently criticized for its incompetence in competitions; there have been shortcomings, and we’ve often dismissed them in an effort to project a positive image of our soccer. But this undermines the credibility of all of African soccer."

After the announcement of the AFCON verdict, the Senegalese Football Federation denounced what it called a unique, unprecedented, and unacceptable decision that brings African football into disrepute. It says it will file an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport.