Former Liverpool defender questions CAF decision after Senegal stripped of AFCON crown.
Former Jamie Carragher has strongly criticised the decision by the Confederation of African Football to award the AFCON 2025 title to the Morocco national football team after the Senegal national football team were ruled to have forfeited the final.
Reacting to the controversial ruling, Carragher expressed disbelief at how a match result could be overturned after the final whistle and celebrations had already taken place.
“Right, hold on a minute… so Senegal win the Africa Cup of Nations final, the crowd’s going wild, the players are lifting the trophy, and everyone’s celebrating and now they’ve been told, ‘No, sorry, Morocco are the winners 3–0!’ Are you having a laugh?
“I mean, this is exactly why I said the AFCON isn’t a major tournament. In Europe? In a Champions League final? In a Euros final? This would never, ever happen! You don’t hand out medals one day and then say, ‘Actually, change of plan the other team wins.’ Madness!
“And can you imagine the scenes in the dressing room? Senegal players crying, Morocco players confused… who’s holding the trophy now? This is football or is it Monopoly?!
“Honestly, it’s a joke. The whole tournament should be about what happens on the pitch, not in some office behind a desk. But no, in AFCON… you can celebrate a trophy today and lose it tomorrow. That’s why I’ve always said it — in Europe, this would never fly. Never!”
Carragher’s comments add to the growing global reaction following CAF’s dramatic appeal ruling, which overturned Senegal’s on-field victory and handed Morocco the title via a 3–0 forfeiture decision—one of the most controversial outcomes in African football history.
