Morocco national football team have been officially declared winners of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after Confederation of African Football (CAF) overturned the result of the final against Senegal national football team.

Senegal had originally won the final 1-0 on 18 January, with Pape Gueye scoring the decisive goal in extra time. The match, however, was marred by controversy after Senegal’s players temporarily refused to continue play when Morocco were awarded a stoppage-time penalty while the score was still level.

Following a delay of around 17 minutes, the match resumed, and Brahim Díaz saw his penalty saved before Senegal went on to secure victory.

CAF has now ruled that Senegal forfeited the match due to their conduct, awarding Morocco a 3-0 win under the competition’s regulations.

In a statement, CAF said Senegal had violated Article 82 of the Africa Cup of Nations rules, which states that a team that refuses to play or leaves the field without the referee’s permission is considered to have lost the match. Article 84 further stipulates that such a violation results in a 3-0 defeat.

The decision followed an appeal by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), which CAF confirmed was admissible and upheld.

Morocco’s federation said the appeal was not intended to challenge Senegal’s on-field performance but to ensure proper enforcement of tournament regulations.

The Senegalese Football Federation has strongly rejected the ruling, describing it as “unfair, unprecedented and unacceptable,” and confirmed it will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Despite the official reversal, the decision has sparked debate across the football world. Senegal’s players had already celebrated their victory publicly, including a parade with the trophy, highlighting the emotional weight of the original result.

The planned Finalissima clash between Spain national football team and Argentina national football team in Qatar has been cancelled due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

The match, which pits the champions of Europe against the winners of South America’s Copa América, had been scheduled for 26 March. European champions Spain were set to face Copa América holders Argentina in the intercontinental showpiece.

UEFA confirmed the cancellation, saying the fixture could not proceed in Qatar because of the current security situation in the region.

“Due to the current political situation in the region, the Finalissima cannot be played as hoped in Qatar,” UEFA said in a statement.

Football’s European governing body said it had explored alternative options, including staging the match at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid or playing a two-legged tie in Madrid and Buenos Aires. However, those proposals were rejected by the Argentine Football Association.

In a joint statement, the CONMEBOL and the Argentine FA said they had suggested an alternative date of 31 March after receiving a proposal to hold the match at a neutral venue in Italy on 27 March.

According to the statement, Argentina agreed to the Italian venue but requested the match be moved to 31 March instead.

“Unfortunately, UEFA announced that holding the match on the 31st – just four days later than the original proposal – was not possible, and the Finalissima was cancelled,” the statement said.

UEFA also revealed that Argentina later suggested staging the match after the next World Cup, but this option was ruled out because Spain had no available dates in their international calendar.

The Royal Spanish Football Federation said it had worked intensively to ensure the match could be played in any format, either in Spain or at a neutral venue.

“Spain was prepared to play as it has always been stated. They set no conditions,” the federation said, adding that it had explored all possible alternatives together with UEFA.

The cancellation comes amid wider disruptions to major sporting events in the region. Over the weekend, the Bahrain Grand Prix and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix scheduled for April were also cancelled, with Formula One citing safety concerns linked to the ongoing conflict.

The Finalissima, organised jointly by UEFA and CONMEBOL, is staged every four years and features the champions of Europe and South America. The most recent edition took place at Wembley Stadium in London in 2022, where Argentina defeated Italy to lift the trophy.

A dispute has emerged over Iran’s participation in the 2026 FIFA World Cup after US President Donald Trump suggested it would not be appropriate for the Iranian team to take part because of safety concerns.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said that Iran would technically be “welcome” at the tournament but questioned whether the team should attend.

“The Iran national soccer team is welcome to the World Cup, but I really don’t believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety,” he wrote.

However, a message posted on the Iranian team’s official Telegram channel pushed back strongly against the comments, arguing that the decision lies with FIFA rather than any individual host nation.

The statement suggested that if security concerns exist, then the host country should reconsider its role instead.

“Certainly, no-one can remove the Iranian national team from the World Cup,” the message said.
“Rather, the country that should be removed is the one that merely carries the title of host but does not have the ability to ensure security for the teams participating in this event.”

The tournament will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, with matches scheduled to begin on 11 June.

Iran are currently scheduled to play New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles on 15 and 21 June respectively, before facing Egypt in Seattle on 26 June.

The uncertainty surrounding Iran’s participation follows recent military escalation involving the United States and Israel, which carried out strikes on Iran earlier this month that reportedly killed the country’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

Iran later responded by launching missiles and drones toward Israel and several Gulf states hosting US military bases, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Earlier in the week, Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA, said Trump had told him Iran would still be “welcome to compete” at the World Cup.

But Iran’s Minister of Sports and Youth, Ahmad Donyamali, suggested his country might reconsider taking part.

Speaking to the IRIB Sports Network, he said: “Given that this corrupt government has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances do we have the appropriate conditions to participate in the World Cup.

“Our boys are not safe, and conditions for participation do not exist.”

Despite those remarks, Iran has not formally withdrawn from the tournament and appears determined to make its own decision on whether to participate.

If Iran ultimately decides to withdraw from what would be its fourth consecutive World Cup appearance, FIFA regulations allow the governing body to select a replacement team, although it remains unclear which nation could take that place.