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A document presented as a final ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has gone viral on social media this weekend, claiming that Morocco has been stripped of its 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title in favor of Senegal. Purporting to be an arbitral award dated June 10, 2026, the document states that CAS accepted the Senegalese Football Federation's appeal, annulled the Confederation of African Football's (CAF) Appeals Board decision and officially declared Senegal African champions.
However, several elements show that the document, reported as an authentic and final CAS ruling by several Algerian media, is fabricated. The first and most obvious inconsistency is the case number. The circulated document bears the reference CAS 2026/A/10857, whereas CAS officially confirmed on March 25, 2026 that Senegal's appeal was registered under CAS 2026/A/12295. Since case numbers remain unchanged throughout arbitration proceedings, a final award cannot be issued under a different reference.
The document also misidentifies the parties to the case. It presents the dispute as being solely between the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) and the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF). Yet CAS' official statement specifies that the appeal was filed against both CAF and the FRMF, as the challenged decision was issued by CAF's Appeals Board. Omitting CAF is a major procedural error that would not appear in a genuine ruling.
No trace on CAS
The strongest indication that the document is fake is that no such decision exists on CAS' official website. Searching the court's database using the genuine case number returns only one result: the March 25 press release announcing that Senegal's appeal had been registered. That statement merely confirmed the appeal, the appointment of an arbitration panel and Senegal's request for additional time to file its appeal brief after receiving CAF's reasoned decision. CAS also stressed that the proceedings remained confidential and did not announce any hearing date or timetable for a final award.
Likewise, no ruling appears in CAS' Recent Decisions section, where non-confidential awards are normally published.
The case stems from the controversial 2025 AFCON final, after Senegal's players left the pitch following a disputed refereeing decision. On March 17, 2026, CAF's Appeals Board overturned an earlier disciplinary ruling, awarded Morocco a 3-0 victory by forfeit and confirmed the Atlas Lions as African champions. Senegal appealed that decision before CAS, but no final ruling has been issued, meaning CAF's decision remains the only official and enforceable one.
