The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) will examine one of the heaviest legal battles in history this Thursday, October 8, 2026 in Lausanne. At the heart of the debates: the contestation of the decision of the Appeal Jury of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), which awarded the CAN 2025 title to Morocco on the green carpet (3-0) following the temporary departure of the Senegalese players from the field during the final on January 18, won in overtime by the Terranga Lions.
Requested by the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF), the arbitration panel composed of three independent experts must decide on the regularity of the regulatory sanctions and the disciplinary procedure applied by CAF. However, supporters and observers impatient to know the final outcome will have to be patient. The aim of this hearing is not to replay the match but to examine strict compliance with disciplinary regulations, the legal outcome still remains very distant.
Indeed, the verdict will in no case be rendered following this day of debates. Me Renaud Duchêne, lawyer specializing in sports law, warned for Le360 that the wait will be particularly long. “For those who wait for a quick decision, they will get what they pay for. I was recently with CAS arbitrators who told me that the award handed down is not long, but there is a review process which is carried out by the president of the CAS. It takes him quite a bit of time”he explained.
Several months of waiting before the decision
This delay is explained by the rigorous internal mechanisms of the Lausanne court. “According to the CAS Code, before signing the award, it is transmitted to the Director General of the CAS, therefore Matthieu Reeb, who can make formal corrections and draw the attention of the panel to questions of principle, without calling into question his freedom of decision”explains the Moroccan media. “The president of the CAS will check whether everything complies with the CAS standards, the regulations and the way of writing,” supported Me Duchêne.
Thus, the publication of the final verdict will be part of a long-term timetable. “It could take a month, two months or even much longer. I am not waiting for a decision at the end of the day, I am categorical,” warned the specialist. The decision which will definitively crown the official winner of the CAN will therefore still be awaited.
