EDITOR NOTE: Passages in this article are translated from the original written in French by Omar Chraibi for Pan-Africa Football.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has ruled in favor of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) in its appeal against the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) and Moroccan club RS Berkane following a long appeal regarding by the FAF on behalf of Algerian club USM Alger.
The FAF advocated for USMA after the Algerian club refused to take part in the 2023-24 CAF Confederation Cup semifinals due to controversy surrounding a jersey introduced for the match by RSB, which displayed a map of Morocco that included the disputed territory of Western Sahara.
With the Western Sahara dispute a hotly contested political issue between the two North African neighbors, Algerian authorities seized the jerseys upon RSB's arrival for the first leg of their semifinal clash which resulted in a forfeit in favor of RSB after USMA refused to take the pitch for both legs. RSB went on to lose the final to Egyptian club Zamalek.
After appealing to the CAF Appeal Commission, the FAF and USMA brought their case to CAS to annul the decision rendered in April 2024 by the CAF which maintained the African football body's approval of the RS Berkane jerseys for the 2023/24 CAF Confederation Cup. The appeal also aimed to recognize that these jerseys contravene the laws of the game, CAF regulations and FIFA rules by conveying a political message.
A remote hearing was held on November 13, 2024. During this hearing, it was not disputed by both parties that the RS Berkane jerseys displayed a map of Morocco including Western Sahara, a map which does not correspond to the official map of Morocco as published by the United Nations.
The conclusions of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)
• The FAF had exhausted all available avenues of appeal before referring the case to CAS, making the initial USMA appeal inadmissible.
• The image of a map of Morocco including Western Sahara on the RS Berkane jerseys constitutes a message, a demonstration or propaganda of a political nature, because it represents the affirmation of a territorial dispute that is still contested and unresolved to this day.
• In accordance with the CAF Equipment Regulations (Article 1.03) and the internationally recognized Laws of the Game (Law 4), it is prohibited to display any content of a political nature on equipment including jerseys.
• In accordance with the CAF Statutes (article 2) and the Implementing Regulations of the CAF Statutes (article 49), CAF is required to respect and apply the principle of political neutrality.
As a result, CAS ruled that the RS Berkane jerseys for the 2023/24 CAF Confederation Cup contravene CAF regulations due to the politically motivated display. The decision of the CAF Appeal Commission validating these jerseys is annulled, and the appeal filed by the FAF is accepted.
No impact on competition results
CAS clarified that this decision has no consequences on the results of the 2023/24 CAF Confederation Cup, meaning that the course of the competition and its results remain unchanged.
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