The Senegalese Football Federation has announced it will pursue an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport following the revocation of its Africa Cup of Nations title.
In a formal statement, the federation condemned the decision as "unjust, unprecedented, and unacceptable," claiming it tarnishes the reputation of African football.
The federation indicated it would act swiftly to file its appeal in Lausanne to defend the rights and interests of Senegalese football.
Senegal's victory had been achieved with a last-minute goal from Pape Gueye during extra time, but was heavily clouded by controversy as the team initially walked off the pitch in protest during the regular 90 minutes.
Contentions arose from two key decisions; the first being the disallowing of a goal by Ismaila Sarr, and the second, a late penalty awarded to Morocco after a VAR review.
Senegal’s manager, Pape Thiaw, appeared to direct his players to leave the field, but they returned approximately 15 minutes later, only for Morocco's Brahim Diaz to miss the penalty, which allowed the match to proceed to extra time.
The Confederation Africaine de Football (CAF) announced on Tuesday that Senegal was deemed to have forfeited the match, with Morocco being declared the champions by a score of 3-0.
CAF's Appeals Committee cited Articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON Regulations to justify their verdict, specifying that if a team leaves the field before the match concludes without the referee's consent, they are considered the loser and thus eliminated from the tournament.
The regulations further stipulate that such a violation results in an automatic 3-0 loss for the team in question.
The Senegalese football authorities have reiterated their commitment to file an appeal promptly to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in response to this decision.
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