Silence shrouds Thursday’s CAS hearing over the AFCON 2025 final, as neither the Moroccan nor the Senegalese representatives have disclosed details of the proceedings, despite rumors circulating in Senegalese media.
Morocco’s delegation left the hearing without commenting on the proceedings or what happened in the courtroom, Hesport reported, while the Senegalese side said only that its lawyers had presented their arguments before the CAS panel.
According to French sports outlet RMC Sport, Senegal’s football federation secretary general, Abdoulaye Sow, said the country had defended itself well during the hearing.
“What we can say is that our lawyers presented our case, shared all their observations, and were heard by the arbitration panel,” Sow told reporters, adding that the CAS is expected to issue its ruling in the coming days or weeks.
Under Rule 43 of the Code of Sports-Related Arbitration, CAS proceedings are confidential by default.
“The parties, the arbitrators, and CAS undertake not to disclose to any third party any facts or other information relating to the dispute or the proceedings without the permission of CAS,” the rule states.
Sow declined to share any details of the hearing, while speculation mounted in Senegalese media and on X over claims that Morocco had presented a second referee report.
Morocco’s alleged second report
According to Senegalese outlet Senenews, citing journalist Malang Sané, Morocco’s lawyers allegedly brought up a second referee’s report during the hearing, and CAF’s lawyers disputed the claim.
Sané shared a screenshot on X of a message citing an inside source, which claimed the hearing’s atmosphere was calm and that Morocco’s lawyers had submitted another referee report, before later posting that the claim was false.
In a separate post on X, Sané walked back the claim, attributing it this time to a Canal journalist, and declared that reports of a second referee report were actually false.
He said that “the report confirmed the match result and recommended disciplinary sanctions against some Senegalese players and staff for a temporary interruption of the match.”
Sané claimed that the report was included in Senegal’s case file submitted to CAS.
The hearing was held behind closed doors, as none of the parties requested a public hearing. CAS said the ruling could take days or weeks.
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