Who will be declared the winner of the last Africa Cup of Nations? The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) will decide this matter. Just over a week before the hearing, further details have now emerged.
In the dispute over the title at the last Africa Cup of Nations, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has announced further details regarding the hearing. It had already been made public in July that the hearing is to take place on 8 October in Lausanne, Switzerland. Furthermore, at the request of both parties – the football associations of Senegal and Morocco – the hearing will not be public and will take place behind closed doors. Members of the press will not be present either.
The hearing is scheduled to begin at 9.30 am CET and is expected to last until the afternoon. Following this, the CAS arbitration panel will begin its deliberations. The CAS states in its announcement that it “cannot indicate at this stage” when a decision can be expected. However, no decision will be made on the day of the hearing.
The three-member arbitration panel appointed by the CAS also includes the German Professor Dr Ulrich Haas. The 61-year-old has been an arbitrator at the CAS since 2002. The tribunal also includes the Italian Luigi Fumagalli, whilst the Frenchman Gerald Simon chairs the proceedings. As the CAS announced, the parties have agreed to hold the hearing in French.
In addition to representatives of the two associations, the lawyers of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) will also be present in person in Lausanne. Following the Africa Cup of Nations final on 18 January, which was marred by disturbances, the CAF Appeals Committee had upheld Morocco’s protest and awarded the match – which Senegal had won 1–0 on the pitch after extra time – as a 3–0 victory for the hosts, Morocco. The Senegalese Football Federation lodged an appeal against this decision and brought the case before the CAS.
The CAF court had justified its decision on the grounds that the Senegalese team had forfeited the match by leaving the pitch in protest against a referee’s decision towards the end of normal time. At first instance, the Senegalese Football Federation had only been fined.
