Sadio Mane was named best player at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after helping his team to what he thought at the time was a second title

🌐 Here's What Happened

Everyone knows a football match should take 90 minutes but, in its own way, the final of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) has been playing out for nearly nine months.

Now, finally, one team or the other - either Morocco or Senegal - willl grab the winner. Only that moment of glory will come in a courtroom, not on the pitch.

On Thursday, Sport's highest legal authority - the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) - will hear Senegal's appeal against the decision to strip them of the title they thought they had won back in January against the hosts in Rabat .

📌 Key Details

But those hungry for a resolution have already been warned it will not arrive on the same day.

In front of 66,000 home fans creating an electric atmosphere inside Rabat's Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Morocco appeared set for a date with destiny as they chased their first Afcon title since 1976.

Instead, the final descended into chaos deep into stoppage time.

With the match still goalless, Senegal thought Ismaila Sarr had scored a dramatic winner, only to discover that referee Jean Jacques Ndala had already blown for a Moroccan free-kick.

The controversy deepened in the 98th minute when, after a VAR review, Ndala awarded Morocco a penalty.

Tempers boiled over on the touchline and in the stands. Senegal coach Pape Thiaw led some of his players and staff down the tunnel, while supporters clashed with security as order briefly collapsed.

📰 Source: BBC Africa