The Guinea Football Federation has called on the
Confederation of African Football to review the outcome of the 1976 Africa Cup
of Nations, citing inconsistencies following a recent ruling involving Senegal.
The request follows CAF’s decision to strip Senegal of
its 2025 AFCON title over a walkout incident and award a 3-0 victory to
Morocco, despite Senegal initially winning the match on the field.
Guinea argues that similar disciplinary standards
should be applied retroactively, pointing to events during the 1976 tournament,
which was decided through a four-team round-robin format.
In a crucial match between Morocco and Guinea, Guinea
took the lead through Chérif Souleymane in the 33rd minute. Moroccan players
reportedly walked off the pitch briefly in protest over a refereeing decision
before returning to continue the game. Ahmed Makrouh later scored an equaliser
in the 86th minute, resulting in a 1-1 draw that ultimately secured the title
for Morocco with five points, while Guinea finished as runners-up.
The Guinean football body has now urged CAF to
reassess that result using the same principles applied in the 2025 case,
insisting that sanctions should apply whenever teams abandon play during
matches.
The federation’s call has reignited discussions around
historical officiating and disciplinary consistency, especially in light of
CAF’s recent ruling.
However, sports legal experts have pointed out that
the regulations cited in the Senegal case were not in effect in 1976 and are
generally not applied retroactively.
CAF has yet to officially respond, and analysts say
the appeal could test the organisation’s willingness to revisit long-standing
football decisions.
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