The Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final – a game to decide the best soccer team on the continent – ended in utter chaos on Sunday as fans caused a huge commotion and players walked off the pitch in protest on an evening which showed the best and very worst of the sport.
Ultimately, Senegal beat Morocco 1-0 to lift the trophy, but the scoreline underplays the disarray that occurred in arguably the most dramatic final in the history of the sport.
With so many flashpoints and moments of madness to dissect, CNN Sports breaks down what exactly happened on a wild and memorable night.
Chaos errupts
The final was between the two highest-ranked teams in Africa. Morocco, which was hosting the tournament, was the slight favorite over Senegal, which last won AFCON back in 2021.
The game also involved some of the best players in the world, with former Liverpool star Sadio Mané spearheading the Lions of Teranga and Paris Saint-Germain superstar Achraf Hakimi leading the Atlas Lions.
While the game started slowly, there was an undercurrent of tension surrounding the final and that feeling boiled over in the most spectacular way in the closing minutes of regulation time.
With the score still 0-0, Senegal thought it had scored the winner when Ismaïla Sarr bundled the ball over the line in the second minute of added time at the end of the match.
But the celebrations quickly turned to fury for the Senegalese players after referee Jean-Jacques Ndala ruled the goal out after judging Abdoulaye Seck had fouled Hakimi in the build-up. The decision looked soft, and everyone in a green Senegal jersey was incensed.
Those feelings were compounded minutes later when the referee awarded Morocco a controversial penalty, after El Hadji Malick Diouf’s challenge on Brahim Díaz.
Despite going unpunished initially, the foul was spotted by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), and Ndala eventually pointed to the spot after reviewing the replays. It was a soft penalty, perhaps, but you could see why the official awarded it.
That decision, though, lit the fuse.
The Lions of Teranga, led by head coach Pape Thiaw, were furious with the decision, and the team’s protestations spilled out onto the pitch, preventing the penalty from being taken. While players, officials and coaching staff clashed on the field, a pocket of Senegal fans at one end of the stadium also began a violent outburst, jumping out of the stands before clashing with stewards. Police and security staff were needed to prevent the supporters from running onto the pitch.
Then, in sensational scenes, Thiaw ordered his players off the field as a way of protest. Some of his team listened and disappeared into the locker room, while a handful of others stayed on the field to try calm the situation.
Chief among those who remained on the field was Senegalese star Mané, who had said this would be his final AFCON game for the national team. The forward seemed intent on his team finishing the match and was seen urging his teammates to come back on the pitch.
After a brief conversation with former Senegal player El Hadji Diouf in the stands, Mané ran towards the players’ tunnel to demand that the rest of the squad come back out on the pitch. Eventually, they listened and play resumed after a 14-minute delay.
Penalty madness
Attention then turned to Díaz, who was handed the unenviable responsibility of taking the penalty amid such a circus. As he prepared to take the spot-kick, the forward continued to be taunted by the Senegalese players, and the Real Madrid star was clearly feeling the pressure.
Then, in what can only be described as a moment of madness, Díaz produced a dire “Panenka” effort – a style of penalty kick that involves chipping the ball gently toward the middle of the goal as the goalkeeper preemptively dives to the left or right – which saw the ball slowly find its way into the hands of Édouard Mendy.
The effort was so bad that many on social media wondered whether the penalty was missed on purpose. But the look on Díaz’s face made it clear the 26-year-old had made a horrific error in judgment, which ultimately cost Morocco its first AFCON crown since 1976.
Díaz was taken off as the game went into extra-time and was seen looking tearful on the substitute bench. He emerged again, eyes bloodshot and puffy from tears, to pick up the Golden Boot award for the tournament’s top goalscorer and a runner-up medal.
The penalty miss did little to calm the chaos. Incidents continued to play out all around Rabat’s Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, notably some scuffles between journalists in the press box and others between Senegal’s substitue goalkeeper and Moroccan flag bearers on the side of the field.
On the pitch, though, the game went into extra-time and Senegal eventually scored a winner through Pape Gueye’s stunning effort.
“Sadio (Mané) told us to come back on and we re-mobilized,” Gueye said after the match. “Édouard then made the save, we stayed focused, got the goal and won the game.”
The headlines from the night had already been written before Senegal held on to win the title, though. It’s a night that will always be remembered for the circus that ensued, rather than the soccer played on the pitch. It is also a night that showed the challenges facing African soccer as a whole.
Wider context
While Morocco coach Walid Regragui called the scenes in the final “shameful,” it’s important to consider the wider context around what many would agree to be an embarrassing moment for the sport.
There has long been deep-rooted mistrust in African soccer, notably between the national confederations and also between CAF – the continent’s soccer governing body.
There was, for instance, a narrative around this particular AFCON that Morocco was being given favorable treatment by officials, both on and off the pitch.
The conspiracy was given extra legs after several refereeing decisions went Morocco’s way early on in the tournament, bringing to the surface concerns that go back years.
Also, in the days leading up to the final itself, the Senegalese FA released a statement complaining about the treatment given to the team after it arrived in Morocco, citing security concerns among other issues.
It’s a backdrop that might go some way to explaining, but not excusing, the scenes seen in the final.
“When Senegal walk off the pitch, to many outside of the continent, it looks like it’s a coach deflecting from his own failures and his team being furious at two individual decisions,” African soccer journalist Ali Howorth told CNN Sports, adding that every other nation in Africa was rooting for the Lions of Teranga to beat Morocco.
“But actually, for Senegalese fans and for millions of fans across Africa, he’s a coach standing up to this institution. There was this sense that what he did was actually right, that it took a lot of courage, and it was pushing back against the system and treatment that other nations have had.”
He added: “It all just built into this crescendo of mistrust. So in many ways, something like this was coming.”
What has been the fallout?
CAF has been quick to denounce what it calls “unacceptable behavior of players and officials” during the final.
In a statement on Monday, it said it “strongly condemns” what occurred, notably incidents “targeting the refereeing team or match organizers.”
“CAF is reviewing all footage and will refer the matter to competent bodies for appropriate action to be taken against those found guilty.”
FIFA president Gianni Infantino was also present in Rabat to watch the game and present the trophy to the winning team. Morocco is set to co-host the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal and has developed a close relationship with FIFA in recent years – something which only adds to the ongoing narrative.
In a post on social media, Infantino congratulated Senegal for its win while also addressing the “unacceptable scenes on the field and in the stands.”
“We strongly condemn the behaviour of some ‘supporters’ as well as some Senegalese players and technical staff members. It is unacceptable to leave the field of play in this manner, and equally, violence cannot be tolerated in our sport, it is simply not right,” he said.
“We must always respect the decisions taken by the match officials on and off the field of play. Teams must compete on the pitch and within the Laws of the Game, because anything less puts the very essence of football at risk.”
Senegal head coach Thiaw was unable to attend his post-match press conference due to ongoing clashes in the media center and he may face punishment for his role in leading his players off the pitch in protest.
It is, ultimately, a sad way for what was an electric tournament to conclude and one which perhaps takes the edge of what should be a celebratory moment for Senegal as a whole.
