AFCON 2025 will remain one of the most controversial editions in the recent history of African football — not for its spectacle, but for the blatant inequality in the treatment of participants: an Algeria heavily sanctioned, and a host nation, Morocco, consistently spared.
The facts are clear, documented, and stubborn: CAF chose its target.
1. Algeria hit with exemplary — and disproportionate — sanctions
Following the Algeria–Nigeria quarter-final on January 10, 2026, CAF imposed an unprecedented avalanche of penalties on the Algerian Football Federation:
- Luca Zidane suspended for two matches (AFCON 2027 qualifiers)
- Rafik Belghali suspended for four matches, including two with a suspended ban
- Total fines of around 100,000 USD, including:
- multiple yellow cards (5,000 USD),
- inappropriate behaviour by players and officials (25,000 USD),
- use of flares (5,000 USD),
- throwing objects (5,000 USD),
- security breaches (10,000 USD),
- offensive gestures by supporters (50,000 USD).
Algeria thus becomes the only country at AFCON 2025 to be hit with such a disciplinary arsenal.
2. Despite the tournament’s scandals, CAF looks away: Morocco remains untouchable
While the sanctions against Algeria are detailed and exhaustive, the incidents involving Morocco — massive, visible, widely publicized — have not resulted in any known disciplinary measure.
A. Shameful scenes during the final: zero sanctions
Outcome: no known public sanction.
B. Endangering the Senegalese delegation
Two days before the final, the Senegalese Federation and coach Pape Thiaw denounced the lack of security coordination, leaving players and staff trapped in an uncontrolled crowd at Rabat train station.
Outcome: no known sanction.
C. A chain of refereeing controversies
The tournament was marked by a series of widely discussed refereeing errors:
- penalties not awarded to several teams facing Morocco,
- controversial decisions in the final itself: a disallowed Senegalese goal followed immediately by a penalty awarded to Morocco.
Even if some points fall under sporting interpretation, it is striking that CAF never mentioned any investigation or disciplinary review.
3. The image of a protected Morocco: rewarded even in defeat
The decision to award Walid Regragui the title of “Coach of the Tournament” — despite heavy criticism in the Moroccan press — raises questions.
No available source provides an objective justification for this award, reinforcing the perception of a political gesture rather than a sporting merit.
4. An asymmetry that undermines CAF’s credibility
Based on established, publicly available facts:
- Algeria is the only country massively and systematically sanctioned.
- Morocco, despite several major controversies, received no known disciplinary action.
- CAF’s decisions shape the public narrative, assigning responsibility for the “chaos” to Algeria while protecting the image of the host country.
On Canal+, journalist Nabil Djellit summed up the general feeling:
“Algerians can accept defeat; what they cannot accept is referees who are not up to the level.”
He added, ironically:
“I’m going to look for my towel.”
A direct reference to one of the most emblematic scandals of this AFCON.
Conclusion: an AFCON that raises a credibility issue
AFCON 2025 will be remembered as a competition in which:
- sanctions were not an instrument of justice, but of narrative control,
- Algeria became the scapegoat,
- Morocco benefited from total leniency,
- CAF lost part of its moral authority.
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