"The thunderous news of Senegal's withdrawal from the Africa Cup of Nations 2025 crown by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) deeply shook the nation known for its love of football. "I'm outraged, a bit shaken up like everyone else, and I'd even say I'm reeling because this isn't exactly the news we were expecting - with the Champions League matches and all - and suddenly you get the news that Senegal has lost the African Champions title to Morocco," Dakar resident Ibrahima Faye commented from Dakar on Wednesday. Another local, Alexandre Lopy, called on the Senegalese Football Federation and the government to intervene and protect the national team. "Everyone knows this is absurd and completely out of the ordinary, he said. "It defies belief, because Senegal won 1-0 on the pitch and the referee blew the final whistle." On Tuesday,  the Confederation ruled the Senegalese team forfeited the final match and rescinded the title. The ruling was delivered two months after the Senegal-Marocco game on January 18 in the Moroccan city of Rabat. The champions of Africa 2025 title went to Morocco, with the match result now officially recorded as a 3-0 victory in favour of the Federation Royale Marocaine de Football (FRMF). However, sport analyst Sane Malang claimed that the decision was made to appease Morocco, which 'controls' the body through donation.  "CAF does not want to sideline Morocco because if it does, Morocco might refuse to organise another competition," he continued. "Today, they have put pressure on CAF. CAF has given in and backed down." The General Secretary of the Senegalese Football Federation, Abdoulaye Seydi Sow, condemned the ruling as a 'blatant breach of trust'. Senegal filed an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over the CAF decision. "Senegal is, first and foremost, a country that upholds the rule of law and respects both national and international regulations. Senegal, together with the whole of Africa, will stand firm, and together with the whole world, Senegal, Africa and the world will confront this blatant breach of trust, a breach that is as clear as day," he said. The unfortunate match originally ended with Senegal winning 1-0 after the team scored the goal in extra time. However, before the game went to extra time, Morocco was awarded a penalty kick, which was missed due to several Senegalese players walking off the pitch in protest of a stoppage-time penalty. After the match, Morocco's football federation launched an appeal accusing Senegal of breaching tournament regulations, which CAF's Appeal Board accepted."