Sports

AFCON: Cote d’Ivoire Suffers Humiliating Exit, Loses 4-0 to E/Guinea

Published

2 years ago

January 23, 2024

Eric

Ivory Coast slipped to the brink of a humiliating exit from the Africa Cup of Nations as the hosts suffered a 4-0 thrashing by Equatorial Guinea in their final Group A game in Abidjan on Monday.

Emilio Nsue scored a double to follow up his hat-trick against Guinea-Bissau as Equatorial Guinea finished top of the group ahead of Nigeria on goal difference.

Nigeria saw off Guinea-Bissau 1-0 in the group’s other game.

Ivory Coast have only failed to get out of the group phase once in the previous nine editions of the tournament, in 2017.

The two-time champions will have to endure a nervy wait to find out if they will go through to the last 16 as one of the four best third-placed sides.

Jean-Louis Gasset’s men need a series of results to go in their favour to avoid sliding out of the competition, after suffering their heaviest ever home defeat.

Thousands of Ivory Coast supporters filed out of the stadium late on as Equatorial Guinea scored three goals in 15 minutes to embarrass their opponents.

The Ivorians started brightly but struggled to create any clear-cut chances, with Oumar Diakite’s wild effort off target after a poor punch by Equatorial Guinea goalkeeper Jesus Owono their best opportunity in the opening 25 minutes.

Nicolas Pepe appeared to be fouled in the box on the half-hour mark, but the winger decided to stay on his feet and a penalty was not given despite Owono coming out to gather the ball.

Equatorial Guinea grabbed a surprise lead with their first real attack shortly before halftime.

Right-back Carlos Akapo weaved his way past a couple of weak challenges and into the area before squaring for Nsue to divert the ball into the bottom corner.

Ibrahim Sangare briefly thought he had equalised in first-half injury time, but VAR quickly ruled the goal out for a clear offside against the Ivory Coast midfielder.

Sangare wasted an excellent chance less than two minutes after the restart, ballooning the ball high over the bar from close range with only Owono to beat at the back post.

Fiorentina forward Christian Kouame also failed to draw the home side level when face to face with Owono, firing his shot straight at the ‘keeper.

Ivory Coast were again denied an equaliser in the 67th minute by VAR for offside after Jean-Philippe Krasso slotted home left-footed.

The underdogs made the Ivorians pay for their profligacy six minutes later, as Pablo Ganet curled a wonderful free-kick into the top corner.

That goal prompted many of the fans in the Alassane Ouattara Stadium to vacate the stands, and the ones who remained were left stunned when Nsue tucked away his fifth goal of the tournament after a quick counter-attack.

Ivory Coast’s goal difference, which could prove crucial in the fight for qualification, took another dent with two minutes of normal time remaining, as Jannick Buyla bobbled a shot into the corner from a rebound.

Equatorial Guinea should have rubbed further salt into their opponents’ wounds in added time, but Luis Asue’s mishit strike with the goal gaping could not take the gloss off a famous victory.

AFP

Sports

FIFA Lists Six Females Among 52 Referees for 2026 World Cup

Published

3 days ago

April 10, 2026

Eric

FIFA on Thursday unveiled its list of match officials for the June 11-July 19 World Cup, including 52 referees, six of whom are women.

Football’s governing body will also take 88 assistant referees and 30 video match officials, who hail from all six confederations and 50 member associations.

“The selected match officials are the very best in the world,” said Pierluigi Collina, FIFA’s chief refereeing officer.

“They were part of a wider pool of officials that was identified and monitored over the past three years. They have attended seminars and officiated at FIFA tournaments.

“In addition, their performances in domestic and international matches were regularly assessed.”

The World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico will be the biggest in history, with a 48-team line-up and 104 matches to be played.

There are 41 more match officials than at Qatar four years ago, where 32 teams played 64 matches.

“The fact that six women match officials have been selected continues a trend that was started four years ago in Qatar as we aim to further develop women’s refereeing,” Collina said, with six women having already refereed in 2022.

AFP

Sports

AFCON 2025: CAS Overturns CAF Verdict

Published

3 weeks ago

March 25, 2026

Eric

African football has been plunged into fresh uncertainty after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) provisionally suspended a controversial ruling that stripped Senegal of their Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title and awarded it to Morocco.

In an interim decision issued on Monday, CAS accepted Senegal’s appeal against the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Appeals Board and ordered a “freeze” on the implementation of its verdict.

The move effectively places the 2025 AFCON title in legal limbo pending a full hearing.

The dispute stems from a chaotic final played in January 2026, where the Teranga Lions of Senegal defeated the hosts, the Atlas Lions of Morocco, 1–0 after extra time. The match took a dramatic turn late on when a contentious penalty was awarded to Morocco.

Although the spot kick was missed, Senegal’s players briefly walked off the pitch in protest, prompting confusion before play eventually resumed, and the match was concluded. Weeks later, Morocco’s federation challenged the outcome, citing provisions within AFCON regulations relating to match forfeiture.

On March 17, CAF’s Appeals Board ruled in Morocco’s favour, declaring that Senegal’s walk-off constituted a breach severe enough to forfeit the match. The result was overturned to a 3–0 victory for Morocco, with Senegal stripped of the title.

Senegal swiftly condemned the decision as unjust and escalated the matter to CAS, arguing that the sanction was disproportionate and undermined the integrity of the on-field result.

CAS has now sided, at least temporarily, with Senegal’s request for urgent intervention.

By granting provisional measures, the tribunal signalled that enforcing CAF’s ruling before a full hearing could cause irreparable harm, particularly in a case involving the revocation of a major continental title.

The immediate consequence is that AFCON 2025 currently has no officially recognised champion. The trophy remains unassigned while legal proceedings continue.

Sports

AFCON 2025: George Weah Urges CAS to Overrule CAF’s Verdict

Published

3 weeks ago

March 21, 2026

Eric

African football legend George Weah has criticised the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for stripping Senegal of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title and awarding it to Morocco.

CAF’s Appeal Board overturned Senegal’s 1–0 victory in the Rabat final after ruling that the team’s walk-off during a late penalty incident constituted a forfeit. The result was subsequently recorded as a 3–0 win in favour of Morocco, crowning the hosts as champions.

Reacting to the decision, Weah, a former Ballon d’Or winner and three-time African Player of the Year, argued that match outcomes should be determined on the pitch, not in post-match rulings.

“In football, the referee on the pitch is the final authority. Once a match is completed, the result obtained on the field must stand,” he said.

Weah warned that overturning completed matches sets a dangerous precedent for the sport.

“There is no sporting justification to nullify a match completed under the referee’s authority.

Otherwise, we risk a slippery slope where committee decisions override on-field calls,” he added.

The former AC Milan forward further stated that the ruling undermines the integrity and credibility of African football, raising concerns over fairness and consistency.