African Champions League Final Marred by Controversial Refereeing Decisions

Millions of viewers remained powerless in the face of the many injustices of the Egyptian refereeing, during this first leg match. Slips that the national press could well have raised, by denouncing the partial decisions towards the Casablanca team.

According to Morocco World News, Morocco does not have an influential press capable of putting pressure on opposing teams when the country’s interest is at stake. The media points out with regret the solidarity attitude of the Tunisian press to denounce the injustices of the Senegalese referee during the match between the Renaissance Sportive de Berkane and the SC Sfax.

Although the Senegalese refereeing was impeccable, the Tunisian press and the Tunisian football authorities did not hesitate to launch an aggressive campaign against the referee and the Confederation of African Football, accusing them of favoritism towards the Moroccan team. The president of the Tunisian federation even traveled to the CAF headquarters in Cairo to defend the SC Sfax before the disciplinary committee.

Still according to the same media, this campaign had a great effect on the subsequent decisions of the CAF, as well as on the attitude of the referee during the match between the Wac of Casablanca and the Espérance of Tunis. The Tunisians have, apparently, shown foresight in negotiating matches against Moroccan teams.

Several international media and referees have agreed that the Casablanca team was the victim of the mistakes of the Egyptian referee, who largely prejudiced the interests of the latter by favoring Espérance of Tunis. The former Syrian referee, and Bein sport analyst, estimated that the goal disallowed from Wydad of Casablanca is indeed valid.

Instead of denouncing the excesses of refereeing and forcing the CAF to reconsider its decisions, the Moroccan press and the FRMF have done nothing to prevent the deliberate sabotage of the chances of the Casablanca club. The media wonders if the Moroccan press is not in hibernation, waiting for its team to be defended by the international press.

What happened on Friday could well happen again in the return match or even during the African competition in Egypt. Why didn’t the national media launch a similar campaign to that of the Tunisians, denouncing the errors of the Egyptian refereeing and putting pressure on the CAF to avoid such scenarios in the future?