By Victor Oladokun, Senior Advisor to Dr Akinwumi Adesina.
Like millions of football fans who descended on Morocco for the African Cup of Nations final here in Rabat, and hundreds of millions more who watched globally, this has been an amazing tournament.
The football infrastructure here has been absolutely worldclass. The quality, efficiency, and cost of the trains services are as good as, if not better than some of the best in the world. Moroccan hospitality before, during and after the tournament has been exceptional.
Significant improvements though still need to be made in the overall quality of hotels and customer service, more so ahead of the soon-to-be jointly hosted 2030 #FIFAWorldCup to be held in Morocco, Portugal, and Spain. I am confident Morocco will pull it off.
For now, here are 12 takeaways, based on my up-close observations.
1. #SENEGAL: While understandably frustrated by very poor officiating, walking off the pitch in protest risked match abandonment and damaged Africa’s global football image. It was a terrible call by the Senegalese coach that did not honor host country Morocco, the continent, #CAF or #FIFA. Thank God that #SadioMane had the presence of mind to stand his ground and convince his Senegalese teammates to return to the field and fight as men.
2. #MOROCCO: Ahead of all CAF and FIFA sanctioned football events, Morocco must prioritize a more robust stadium security system to contain fan anger and prevent escalations from erupting into full blown riots when decisions go against the home team. It was unacceptable to see Moroccan stadium officials and players (Hakimi and others included) deliberately throw away the towel of the Senegalese goalkeeper (which is needed to wipe down gloves during play). The same antic was used against Nigeria, including a racist slur by a Moroccan fan who threw a banana at Nigerian goalkeeper #Nwabali. These antics were juvenile, unnecessary, and highly provocative. It really took a shine off of the exceptional and kind hospitality that Moroccans always go out of their way to extend to foreigners. (Topic for another time).
3. #CAF: Africa’s apex football association, must enhance referee and VAR training to minimize controversial calls in high-stakes moments, and to reduce the likelihood of prolonged disputes and delays. In several of the tournament’s matches, the level of officiating fell well below acceptable international standards. Poor officiating in several matches undermined the credibility of the tournament..Calls were made that should not have been made. Calls were also not made that should have been made. Consequently, the media and fans were justified in their allegations or suspicions of official collusion favoring one team over the other. Whether true or not, is not the issue. Sometimes, perception is reality!
4. #FIFA: should develop clear international protocols for handling team walk-offs, including immediate sanctions to Federations, coaches, and players, to deter similar actions in future tournaments.
5. #SENEGAL: And every other country for that matter, needs a mature level-headed player in the mold of #SadioMane to de-escalate tensions swiftly. Thanks to his leadership, sanity prevailed, a full-blown crisis was avoided, the game resumed, and victory was secured.
6. #MOROCCO: And all other countries, should avoid high-risk penalty techniques like the Panenka in pressure situations, unless the taker is mentally prepared, as Diaz’s tame effort proved costly. The same seemingly laissez faire approach decisively cost #Nigeria its Semi Final match against Morocco when #Chukwueze gifted the Moroccan goalkeeper.
7. #CAF: Implement stricter time limits for VAR reviews to avoid extending stoppage time excessively (e.g. 24 minutes), which fueled frustration and chaos.
8. #FIFA: Promote cross-confederation education on sportsmanship to counter perceptions of African football as chaotic, and to ensure fair play overrides national biases.
9. #MOROCCO: As AFCON hosts, and ahead of the 2030 World Cup, consider this a test-run and invest in enhanced crowd management strategies, including riot police readiness, to safeguard players, officials and fans, during heated matches.
10. #SENEGAL: Protesting soft penalties can backfire. The 16-20 minute delay highlighted poor sportsmanship. Any other referee could have called for a forfeit of the match in favor of Morocco, which would only have added to the shameful drama.
11. #CAF: Enforce post-match reviews of referee decisions to build trust, and address complaints like Senegal’s disallowed goal that preceded the penalty drama.
12. #FIFA: Monitor and advise tournament organizers especially in politically charged situations (for example in matches involving arch rivals Morocco and Algeria) and to prevent external factors, including excessive fan nationalism from escalating on-field disputes.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Victor Oladokun, Senior Advisor to Dr Akinwumi Adesina.
