EFF Slams CAF Over Decision to Strip Senegal of 2025 AFCON Title

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has launched a scathing attack on the Confederation of African Football (CAF) following the body’s controversial decision to strip Senegal of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) trophy and retrospectively award it to Morocco.

In a strongly worded statement released on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, the South African political party described the ruling as a “dangerous overreach” and a “fundamental misapplication” of football regulations. The EFF argued that CAF’s decision contradicts the actual events of the final, noting that the referee never abandoned or suspended the match. According to the party, the game proceeded to its “natural conclusion,” with Senegal securing victory on the pitch.

“CAF rules are clear that where a team refuses to continue play, withdraws, or abandons a match without the referee’s authorisation, sanctions may follow, including forfeiture. However, in this case, the match was neither abandoned nor suspended by the referee,” the EFF stated. The party further highlighted that Morocco continued to participate fully in the match, even taking and missing a penalty during open play. To retrospectively declare the match illegitimate is, according to the EFF, a “deliberate distortion of both the laws of the game and CAF’s own statutes.”

The statement went beyond the pitch, raising what the party described as “long-standing concerns” about the level of influence Morocco wields within the continental football governing body.

The EFF questioned the frequency with which major events are hosted in Morocco and suggested a link between sports investment and broader foreign policy. “This influence cannot be separated from Morocco’s broader geopolitical agenda, particularly its ongoing efforts to secure support from African nations regarding their occupation of Western Sahara,” the party alleged.

The EFF also detailed what it called “logistical and environmental challenges” faced by visiting teams during the tournament, including substandard accommodation, inadequate transport to training facilities, and “general organisational hostility.” The party even pointed to “disturbing” conduct at match venues, alleging that Moroccan ball boys were used to frustrate opposing teams by removing items such as goalkeepers’ towels.

Concluding its statement, the EFF declared its firm support for Senegal, insisting that results should not be decided by “financial power” or “political considerations.” “The EFF rejects the absurdity of allowing teams to rewrite results through boardroom manoeuvres after failing to secure victory on the pitch. Such actions reduce the game to a playground of political and financial influence rather than fair competition,” the statement read.