• * Segun Odegbami

Former Nigeria international footballer ,Segun Odegbami has urged the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) to review its regulations and reinstate Senegal as champions of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title it awarded to Morocco.

Reacting to the verdict, Odegbami while backing Senegal as the true winner of the trophy, described CAF’s overturn of the January final result as “bizarre, condemnable and unjustifiable.”

According to Odegbami, Senegal had already been crowned champions and celebrated globally before the verdict was reversed on technical grounds.

“It is unheard of in football history. You cannot take away a trophy won on the pitch two months later,” he said.

He added that the decision has sparked widespread outrage among fans and stakeholders, warning it could damage CAF’s credibility.

“This judgement has shaken CAF’s credibility. It is not surprising the world is up in arms,” Odegbami stated.

He recalled that Senegal were officially crowned by CAF and FIFA officials before a global audience, only for the decision to be overturned later by the Appeals Committee, a ruling he labelled a “poisoned verdict.”

FIFA has directed all teams participating in its women’s competitions to include at least one female head coach or assistant as part of new regulations aimed at boosting women’s representation in coaching.

The directive, approved by the FIFA Council, will take effect from the U-17 and U-20 Women’s World Cups as well as the Women’s Champions Cup.

Teams will also be required to have a minimum of two female staff members on the bench across all women’s tournaments, from youth to senior level.

FIFA Chief Football Officer Jill Ellis said the move is designed to address the shortage of women in coaching roles at the highest level.

“There are simply not enough women in coaching today. We must do more to accelerate change by creating clearer pathways, expanding opportunities, and increasing visibility for women on our sidelines,” Ellis said.

She described the regulations, alongside targeted development programmes, as a significant investment in both current and future generations of female coaches.

Ellis highlighted the disparity at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia, where only 12 of the 32 head coaches were women, figures that do not reflect the rapid growth of the women’s game globally.

She noted that Sarina Wiegman was the only female coach to reach the latter stages of the tournament, guiding England to a second-place finish.

According to FIFA data, women account for just five percent of coaches across both men’s and women’s teams worldwide.

A separate 2024 benchmarking report covering 86 women’s leagues found that only 22 per cent of head coaches are women.

Photo: Morocco’s Abdelhamid Sabiri being congratulated by teammates after scoring the opening goal in yesterday’s match.

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has stripped the Teranga Lions of Senegal of their AFCON 2025 title.

The continental football governing body says its Appeal Board ruled that Senegal forfeited the match by leaving the pitch according to its tournament regulations.

The Appeal Board awarded Morocco a 3-0 victory win, and crowned the Atlas Lions the AFCON 2025 champions.

Senegal faced hosts Morocco in the AFCON 25 final in Rabat, and Morocco were awarded a last-minute penalty that was disputed despite VAR confirmation.

The Senegalese players stormed off the pitch in protest, but returned several minutes later to continue the match.

Brahim Diaz’s penalty was saved, and Senegal went on to score an extra-time winner and clinch a second AFCON title.

Morocco appealed Senegal’s action of leaving the pitch, but CAF’s disciplinary board ruled in favour of Senegal, leading to an appeal by Morocco’s Football Federation.