CAF President Patrice Motsepe has openly admitted that concerns raised by football fans over the standard of officiating at the AFCON 2025 tournament are valid and are receiving serious attention from the Confederation of African Football.
Speaking in a video shared by SABC Sport on Facebook, Motsepe emphasized that the perception of match officials’ decisions by ordinary football supporters is critically important and cannot be ignored.
In his words, Motsepe said:
That’s a very important point. What is important is what the ordinary football supporter and spectator says. Before the competition started, I met with all the referees and VAR officials and told them that they must officiate at the highest level, with integrity, impartiality, and independence.
There is a recognition among all of us that what the ordinary supporter sees about football is critically important, and we have to respect that. When a supporter asks, ‘Was it not a penalty? Was it not a red card? Was it not a goal?’—whatever the observation is—we are intently attentive to them.
Softfootball understands that AFCON 2025 was one of the most dramatic editions in recent history, marked by controversy, confusion, and intense debate—particularly during the final between Senegal and host nation Morocco.
The final descended into chaos after a late controversial penalty decision, which led Senegalese players to briefly refuse to continue the match. It took the calm intervention of Sadio Mané to convince his teammates to return to the pitch. Morocco eventually missed the penalty, and Senegal went on to win the final 1–0, lifting the AFCON trophy amid widespread debate.
Motsepe’s comments suggest CAF is aware of the damage such incidents can cause to the image of African football and may prompt internal reviews aimed at improving refereeing standards in future tournaments.
