Le Monde: Referee Receives Instructions Not to End Game to ‘Preserve’ Event’s Media Image

New Le Monde’s reporting has reignited the controversy surrounding the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final. The French newspaper says it reviewed five official reports from the intense January 18 clash in Rabat, including one suggesting that the referee received instructions not to send off two Senegal players when the game resumed, apparently to protect the final’s media image.

According to the report, the instructions were allegedly given during the lengthy interruption that followed Senegal’s walkout late in the final, apparently to preserve the event’s media image and ensure the match could be completed. The revelation has shifted the focus back to the events of January 18 in Rabat and the decisions taken behind the scenes during one of the most chaotic nights in recent African football history.

Nearly 80 days after the final, the outcome remains under legal review.

Senegal lifted the trophy on the night after defeating Morocco 1–0 in extra time at Rabat’s Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, but CAF’s Appeal Board later overturned the result and awarded Morocco a 3–0 victory by forfeit. The case is now before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

At the heart of Le Monde’s report are five official documents relating to the final, including reports from the referee, the match commissioner, the general coordinator, and security officials. According to the French outlet, these reports confirm that Senegal’s players left the pitch in the 97th minute after the referee awarded a penalty to Morocco in stoppage time.

The decision triggered an immediate reaction from Senegal’s players and technical staff, with much of the squad heading toward the dressing room in protest.

The interruption lasted several minutes as officials worked to restore order before the match was eventually restarted.

The most significant new detail concerns what happened during that stoppage.

According to Le Monde, officials allegedly instructed the referee not to caution Senegal players upon their return, despite the fact that at least two had already been booked and another yellow card would have led to automatic expulsions.

This detail is now central to the controversy. Rather than focusing solely on whether Senegal temporarily abandoned the field, attention has shifted to whether the match officials were subjected to institutional pressure during the restart.

After play resumed, Morocco missed the penalty, and Senegal later scored the winning goal in extra time to claim what appeared to be a second AFCON title on the field.

CAF’s Appeal Board, however, later treated the walkout as a withdrawal under Articles 82 and 84 of its competition regulations, which state that any team leaving the pitch without authorization is deemed to have forfeited the match.

On that basis, the board overturned the on-field result and awarded Morocco a 3–0 victory.

Senegal has strongly challenged that ruling. The Senegalese Football Federation has argued that the match was completed under the full authority of the referee and that the restart cannot later be reclassified as a forfeit after the final whistle. 

The federation has since taken the matter to CAS, where the focus is expected to remain narrow: whether CAF correctly applied its own regulations to the established facts. 

With Le Monde’s latest revelations, the spotlight is now even more on the alleged instructions given to the referee during the interruption.

Read also: New AS Report Exposes What Happened in the 2025 AFCON Final

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