FIFA President Gianni Infantino has sharply criticized Senegal’s decision to leave the pitch in protest during the closing moments of the Africa Cup of Nations final, calling the scenes “unacceptable” despite Senegal eventually lifting the trophy.
After witnessing the tense clash in Rabat, Infantino shared his frustration on social media, urging football authorities to ensure such incidents are not repeated. The final was paused for nearly 15 minutes when players, led by head coach Pape Thiao, exited the field following a controversial penalty decision awarded to hosts Morocco.
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒈𝒍𝒚 𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒏𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅,” 𝑰𝒏𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒐 𝒘𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆. “𝑾𝒆 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒔.”
CAF and Morocco React as Discipline Looms for Senegal
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) later confirmed it is reviewing all available footage and will forward the matter to its disciplinary bodies. Meanwhile, the Moroccan Football Federation announced plans to lodge formal complaints with both CAF and FIFA, claiming the interruption disrupted the natural flow of the final.
The drama unfolded after a Senegal goal was ruled out for a foul, moments before VAR awarded Morocco a late penalty. Senegal fans and players reacted angrily, and the match was halted as security restored order in the stadium.
“𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒗𝒊𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆,” 𝑰𝒏𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒐 𝒂𝒅𝒅𝒆𝒅, 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚 𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒊𝒕𝒄𝒉.
Despite the chaos, Senegal regrouped, saved the penalty, and went on to secure the title in extra time. However, questions remain over possible sanctions for coach Thiao and whether any punishment could extend beyond African competitions to global tournaments.
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