Yassine Bounou Reacts As CAF Awards Morocco AFCON 2025 Title off the Pitch
- Atlas Lions goalkeeper Yassine Bounou has spoken after CAF awarded the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title
- CAF stripped Senegal of the title after Morocco’s appeal and awarded the North Africans a 3-0 walkover win
- Bounou was named the goalkeeper of the tournament after keeping five clean sheets, edging Senegal’s Édouard Mendy
Morocco’s goalkeeper Yassine Bounou has spoken after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) awarded the Atlas Lions the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title.
The Teranga Lions of Senegal defeated Morocco in the final at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat on January 18, 2026, to win the title.
Source: Getty Images
Senegal briefly disrupted the match in the closing stages of the 90 minutes to protest referee Jean-Jacques Ndala's decision to award Morocco a penalty.
The match was halted for 17 minutes until Sadio Mane appealed to his teammates to return to the pitch and continue the match, which they agreed to.
Real Madrid star Brahim Diaz missed the penalty, playing a ridiculous Panenka into the hands of Édouard Mendy, and forcing the match into extra time.
Pape Gueye scored in the fourth minute of extra time, sending a ferocious shot past Bounou. Senegal held on to their advantage for the win.
CAF investigated the incident and sanctioned Morocco and Senegal with fines and suspension for players and Pape Thiaw who ordered his players off the pitch.
FRMF appealed the decision and CAF’s Appeal Board upheld two of their requests to strip Senegal of the title and award Morocco a 3-0 victory.
However, CAF rejected Morocco’s request to seize the trophy and medals from Senegal and have the federation return the $10 million prize money.
Senegal appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sports in a bid to overturn CAF’s decision and uphold its status as the rightful winner of AFCON 2025.
Bounou reacts to CAF’s decision
According to CAF, Bounou was named the goalkeeper of the tournament, pipping Senegal's Édouard Mendy, despite having five clean sheets each.
Morocco's goalkeeper Yassine Bounou has shared his thoughts about CAF’s decision to award his national team the AFCON title after an appeal.
Source: Getty Images
Morocco played their first match since the end of AFCON against Ecuador, playing a 1-1 draw after which the goalkeeper spoke in the mixed zone.
“We're focused on what's ahead. We're not getting involved in all that. Do we feel like champions? My answer is the same as the one given by our Federation, and that's it,” he said as quoted by Foot Africa.
See X video below.
“The episode we went through during the AFCON was tough for the squad. But the Moroccan national team managed to overcome it mentally. It wasn't an easy period, but we handled our matches well.”
The Atlas Lions’ travail continued after the tournament. Head coach Walid Regragui left his role and Mohamed Ouahbi replaced him.
Senegal sends message to Morocco
Legit.ng previously reported that Senegal sent message to Morocco amid calls for CAF to withdraw the AFCON trophy from the Teranga Lions.
Senegal defied the agitations and paraded the trophy before their 2-0 win over Peru in an international friendly match at Stade de France in Paris.
Source: Legit.ng
