Afcon final 'deficiencies' dealt with - Caf president Motsepe

ByCelestine Karoney

BBC Sport Africa, Nairobi

The Confederation of African Football is addressing the "deficiencies" which contributed to the chaotic finale of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, according to the organisation's president Patrice Motsepe.

Senegal were crowned winners on the night, following a 1-0 victory after extra time, but were stripped of the title by a Confederation of African Football (Caf) appeal board in March, with the trophy instead handed to the hosts.

The sanction was applied because the West Africans walked off the pitch in protest after Morocco were awarded a penalty following a VAR review in second-half injury time, when the game was goalless.

With stadium security also clashing with fans and Morocco accused of unsportsmanlike conduct over so-called 'towelgate' - a series of incidents which saw players and ballboys moving the Senegal goalkeeper's towel - Motsepe says African football's governing body has taken action.

"We've done good work in terms of building the confidence and the trust amongst the football community of our referees and of our VAR," the South African told BBC Sport Africa.

"But there are still these challenges and we've recognised what the deficiencies were that led to the unfortunate incidents we had in Morocco.

"We've introduced new laws, new regulations which will ensure that doesn't happen again."

Despite Motsepe's assurances that African football emerged from the tournament "stronger than ever before", the events in Rabat's Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium on 18 January and the subsequent move to hand Morocco the trophy have undoubtedly undermined Caf's attempts to cultivate an improved image.

Nigel Reo-Coker was among the pundits who went viral for his comments, with the former West Ham and Aston Villa midfielder telling US broadcaster CBS Sports that the decision to strip Senegal of their crown was an "embarrassment".

"It gives other federations around the world an opportunity to laugh at Caf, to laugh at the Africa Cup of Nations [Afcon] and laugh at Africa as a continent because of how this whole situation has been handled," he continued.

The Senegalese Football Federation described it as a "robbery" and have challenged the ruling at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The reputational damage has been so severe that Motsepe embarked on a diplomatic tour of both Senegal and Morocco in a bid to rebuild trust.

"We are waiting for the judgement of the Court of Arbitration for Sport and African football is continuing to grow and develop," said the 64-year-old, who was re-elected unopposed for a second term in March last year.

"Whatever decision comes, we will respect and implement."

Even as Caf works to limit the damage to its reputation, the organisation's appointment of Jean-Jacques Ndala, the man who took charge of the Afcon final, as the referee for the first leg of the African Champions League final on Sunday has generated fresh debate.

Motsepe says DR Congo's Ndala will oversee the biggest game in African club football despite both sides involved, South Africa's Mamelodi Sundowns and Morocco's AS FAR, voicing concern.

"After the [Afcon] final in Morocco, the chairman of the referees committee came to the executive committee, and they gave a thorough report of his (Ndala's) performance and they assessed how he refereed the match in accordance with the global best practises of refereeing," Motsepe explained.

"The referee's committee is independent. We don't get involved and should not get involved in identifying who should ref at which match.

"I've been told that both the football clubs have expressed their reservations, but we have to respect the decisions that are taken by this independent body.

"The very specific thing is to continue training our referees. Some of our referees are as good as the best in the world."

Motsepe spoke to the BBC on the sidelines of the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi, where French President Emmanuel Macron was the high-profile guest.

While he will have his eyes fixed on France's chances of regaining their Fifa World Cup crown, Kenya's footballing focus is on co-hosting next year's Afcon alongside neighbours Tanzania and Uganda.

A recent inspection report by Caf flagged delays in stadium upgrades and other infrastructure projects such as transport links in all three countries, but the Caf president insists the tournament will be "enormously successful".

"Are there areas where there's room for improvement? Absolutely," Motsepe said.

"But the commitment, the support from President Ruto (of Kenya), from Madam [President] Samia [Suluhu Hassan] in Tanzania, from President Museveni (of Uganda) is enormous.

"We've got people from Caf who are permanently based in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, and they are everyday working on the preparations and making sure that the Afcon which is going to take place in June 2027 is going to be successful."

Preparations in Kenya, which is building a brand new 60,000-seater stadium, are unfolding against the backdrop of a governance dispute within the Football Kenya Federation (FKF).

Nine of the federation's 12 national executive committee members have demanded the resignation of FKF president Hussein Mohammed over allegations of financial impropriety.

Mohammed rejected the accusations and blamed rivals led by his deputy, former Kenya and Inter Milan midfielder McDonald Mariga, of attempting a coup.

World governing body Fifa and Caf have requested clarification regarding the power struggle and Motsepe is optimistic a solution will be found soon.

"I'm confident that we will resolve those issues in a manner that complies with the Caf and Fifa statutes and regulations," he said.

Kenya has previously been sanctioned by Fifa for administrative irregularities, including a nine-month ban handed out in February 2022 after Kenya's sports ministry disbanded the FKF over alleged misappropriation of funds.

Next year's Afcon will be the first to be held in three countries and will mark the tournament's return to East Africa for the first time since Ethiopia hosted in 1976.