By Andrew Warshaw
February 12 – Moroccan football authorities have come out fighting by refusing to accept the sanctions imposed on them by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for pulling out of hosting the recent Africa Cup of Nations.
The decision to withdraw two months before the start of the tournament citing health risks from fans traveling from Ebola-affected regions of West Africa led to Equatorial Guinea being drafted in as substitute hosts and Morocco being banned from the next two editions of the competition, fined $1 million and asked to pay a further $9 million in compensation.
The Moroccans have angrily accused CAF and its president Issa Hayatou of breaking their word, having apparently been told in January at a meeting in Cairo that only financial sanctions would be imposed.
In a statement they said they were “totally stunned by the decisions taken by CAF, which have no relation to the conclusions” taken at that meeting between Hayatou and the president of the Moroccan federation, Faouzi Lakjaa (pictured).
The statement said there was “no regulatory basis” for the punishments and that Lakjaa would now take “all measures to uphold the rights and interests of Moroccan football and provisions” but did not elaborate.
According to the local media, the federation is divided between those seeking a negotiated solution with CAF, or appealing to the Court of Arbitration of Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.
In 2010, Togo successfully appealed a similar two-tournament ban after refusing to play in the wake of a deadly attack on its team bus.
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