Senegal has made extensive complaints about the way its national football team is being treated in Morocco ahead of Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations final against the host nation.
The Senegalese Football Federation, known as FSF, issued a statement early on Saturday morning criticizing an alleged lack of security arrangements for the team’s arrival in Rabat, problems with the team’s accommodation, problems with its training facilities and difficulties in obtaining a fair allocation of tickets for its supporters.
It called on the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the local organizing committee to “immediately take all corrective measures to ensure respect for the principles of fair play, equal treatment and security which are indispensable to the success of this celebration of African football.”
Senegal’s players traveled by train from Tangier to Rabat on Friday, but upon arrival encountered what the federation said was a «clear lack of adequate security measures». Videos on social media showed the players and staff surrounded by crowds of people jostling to take selfies and photos as they tried to make their way to the team bus.
«We have to say that what happened is abnormal, abnormal for a team like Senegal to be left among the crowd. The players were in danger. Anything could have happened because of the actions of malicious people,» Senegal coach Pape Thiaw said at the pre-match press conference on Saturday.
Anger boiled over at the press conference when a journalist suggested that CAF was responsible for the shortcomings and not the local organizing committee. Senegalese media objected to his statement.
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The federation said the lack of security at the train station “exposed the players and coaching staff to overcrowding and risks incompatible with the standards of a competition of this size and the prestige of a continental final.”
The federation said it had to make a formal written complaint to obtain adequate hotel accommodation for the team after arriving in Rabat. It did not describe the condition of the accommodation first offered to the team.
The federation said it had informed CAF of its “categorical refusal” to hold team training sessions at the Mohammed VI complex, where the Moroccan team has been based throughout the tournament. Morocco will also train there on Saturday.
The federation said it “raises an issue of sporting fairness” and that it had still not been informed of where the Senegalese team can train.
In the media activities agenda for Saturday, which was shared with the media on Friday, Senegal’s training location had yet to be confirmed.
The federation said the ticket sales situation was «concerning.» It could only buy 2,850 tickets for its supporters as per the maximum limits allowed by CAF.
The federation said the allocation is “insufficient given the demand” and that it “deplores the restrictions imposed, which punish the Senegalese public.”
The capacity of the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, where the final will take place, is 69,500 fans. Morocco has been backed by vociferous support in all its matches so far.
Morocco wants to end a fifty-year wait for its second Africa Cup of Nations title. Senegal, which won the 2021 trophy, is also going for its second title.
The federation said it was making its complaints public “in the interest of transparency and to defend the interests of the Senegalese national team.”
Published on January 17, 2026
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