Senegal initially won the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on the pitch, but after a later disciplinary ruling by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Morocco have now been officially declared the 2025 AFCON champions.

Quick Scoop: Who “won” AFCON 2025?

  • Senegal beat hosts Morocco 1–0 after extra time in the final played in Rabat, with Pape Gueye scoring the decisive goal.
  • That victory was widely celebrated as Senegal’s second AFCON title in recent years.
  • However, the final was chaotic, involving a long VAR review and Senegal temporarily walking off in protest at a late Morocco penalty.
  • In March 2026, CAF’s appeal bodies ruled that Senegal had effectively forfeited the final because of the walk-off, and the title was administratively awarded to Morocco.

So if you mean “who lifted the trophy on the night?”, the answer is Senegal.

If you mean “who is the official AFCON 2025 winner after all appeals?”, the answer is Morocco.

Why is it so confusing?

  • On the field: Senegal’s 1–0 extra‑time win, sealed by Gueye’s goal, looked like a straightforward sporting result and was treated as such for months.
  • Off the field: Morocco appealed, arguing that Senegal’s walk-off during the penalty controversy constituted grounds for a forfeit under CAF regulations.
  • CAF’s decision: After review, CAF stripped Senegal of the title and retrospectively declared Morocco champions, an extremely rare move that overturned what happened on the pitch.

Mini timeline

  1. January 2026 – Final played in Morocco; Senegal win 1–0 after extra time and celebrate as AFCON 2025 champions.
  1. Following weeks – Debate and controversy grow around the chaotic ending and Senegal’s protest walk-off.
  1. March 16–17, 2026 – CAF announces that Senegal forfeited and that Morocco are officially recorded as AFCON 2025 winners.

Two perspectives fans have

  • “Football side” view: Many supporters and players still emotionally see Senegal as the “real” winners, because they won the match itself on the field.
  • “Official record” view: Statistically, record books and future reference lists will show Morocco as AFCON 2025 champions following CAF’s ruling.

In forum-style debates you’ll often see people say something like:
“Senegal won it on the pitch, but Morocco got it in the boardroom.”

Short TL;DR

  • Match winners on the night: Senegal.
  • Official, post‑appeal AFCON 2025 champions: Morocco.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.