The Court of Arbitration for Sport has scheduled a hearing for October 8, 2026. This hearing is about the appeal from the Senegalese Football Federation regarding the disputed result of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations final.
CAS announced this on Friday. The hearing will happen at its base in Lausanne, Switzerland.
The issue involves the Senegalese Football Federation, the Confederation of African Football, and the Royal Moroccan Football Federation.
Senegal is contesting CAF’s decision that declared the Teranga Lions as having forfeited the AFCON 2025 final. They awarded Morocco a 3-0 victory instead.
The appeal was registered on March 25, 2026. Senegal wants to be declared the winners of the tournament.
CAS's statement said, "The Court of Arbitration for Sport confirms a hearing has been scheduled for the procedure between the Senegalese Football Federation against the Confederation of African Football and the Royal Moroccan Football Federation concerning the final of the Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025."
It continued, "The hearing will take place on 8 October 2026, at CAS headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland."
CAS mentioned that the case will follow its regular timeline because the parties did not agree to speed things up.
"The Parties did not agree to expedite this procedure, which is therefore following a standard timeline according to CAS procedural rules," the statement explained.
The hearing date was set after talking to all involved parties. It will be behind closed doors since none of the parties asked for a public hearing.
CAS said, "This means it will take place behind closed doors."
The arbitration body also said there would not be a ruling on the hearing day. The panel will start discussing the case only after hearing from both sides.
"After the hearing, the Panel will start its deliberations. At this stage, CAS cannot state when a final decision will be rendered but it will not be on the day of the hearing," the statement noted.
CAS also urged people to avoid false information about the case. They said that reports not from their official sources should not be seen as accurate.
"Only information provided through CAS channels is considered official and any announcement concerning this case will be published on the CAS website," they added.
The dispute began after the AFCON 2025 final held in Rabat on January 18, 2026.
The match had a chaotic finish when the referee awarded Morocco a penalty following a VAR review. Senegal’s players left the pitch in protest and stayed off for about 14 minutes before returning to play.
The penalty was missed, and Senegal won 1-0 after extra time, seemingly securing their second AFCON title.
However, Morocco disputed the result, claiming Senegal’s walk-off broke CAF rules.
On March 17, 2026, the CAF Appeal Board sided with Morocco. They ruled Senegal forfeited the final under Articles 82 and 84 of the tournament regulations. They overturned the original result and gave Morocco a 3-0 victory and the title.
This decision caused a lot of uproar in African football. The Senegalese Football Federation called the ruling a "travesty" and said it had no legal basis.
Senegal then filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport. They want to overturn CAF’s decision, restore the original result, and be officially recognized as the 2025 AFCON champions.
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