CAN-2025: aucun pays d'Afrique traité "de manière préférentielle", affirme le président de la CAF
The president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Patrice Motsepe, assured on Wednesday that no African country was being treated in a "preferential" manner and praised the "independence" of its disciplinary bodies, after Tuesday's decision to strip Senegal of the 2025 African championship title in favor of Morocco, the host country.
"No African country will receive more preferential, advantageous or favorable treatment than any other," the South African leader said in a filmed address, as Senegalese authorities on Wednesday called for an international investigation into "suspicions of corruption within the CAF's governing bodies."
"Their independence (of the disciplinary bodies, editor's note) is reflected in the decisions taken by the two bodies. The CAF disciplinary committee, a single body, took a single decision. The CAF appeals committee adopted a completely different position," he said.
The appeals jury of the Confederation of African Football on Tuesday, two months after a chaotic final, revoked the title won by Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations and awarded it to Morocco.
In the first instance at the end of January, the CAF disciplinary jury, without challenging the final result of the match, imposed a series of disciplinary sanctions, including fines amounting to several hundred thousand euros, on the federations of the two countries for unsportsmanlike conduct and violations of the principles of fair play.
"I have already expressed my deep disappointment with the incidents that occurred during the final," Mr. Motsepe recalled. "They undermine the remarkable work done by CAF for many years to guarantee integrity, respect, ethics, governance and credibility."
"These incidents highlight the persistent difficulties linked to suspicion and mistrust," he conceded. "This is a problem inherited from the past. From the moment I took office, one of the main concerns was the impartiality, independence and respect of referees and match commissioners."
"I am told that Senegal will appeal, which is very important. Each of the 54 African nations has the right to appeal and defend its interests," the leader concluded, reaffirming his support for the right of African countries to appeal to the CAS, and specifying that the CAF "will respect the decision taken at the highest level."
Commentaires (3)
Participer à la Discussion
Règles de la communauté :
💡 Astuce : Utilisez des emojis depuis votre téléphone ou le module emoji ci-dessous. Cliquez sur GIF pour ajouter un GIF animé. Collez un lien X/Twitter, TikTok ou Instagram pour l'afficher automatiquement.