The fine imposed on Ismael Saibari, who had tried to steal Édouard Mendy's towel during the AFCON final, has been overturned by CAF.

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The original was posted on /r/soccer by /u/Sparky-moon on 2026-03-18 06:45:02+00:00.

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In addition to Senegal’s defeat by default, as decided by CAF, which declared Morocco the winner of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday evening, other decisions were made, including the cancellation of the fine imposed on Morocco’s Ismael Saibari, who had attempted to steal Édouard Mendy’s towel.

Awarding the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations to Morocco, at the expense of Senegal—which won on the field on January 18 (1-0, OT) but lost on the administrative table this Tuesday evening—was not the only decision announced by CAF. The Confederation of African Football also ruled on other appeals. Notably regarding the unlikely controversy over Édouard Mendy’s towel.

At the end of the match, Yehvann Diouf, Senegal’s substitute goalkeeper, was tasked with protecting Mendy’s towel and preventing it from being stolen. In various videos taken from the stands and posted on social media, PSG right-back Achraf Hakimi was seen throwing it over the advertising boards, and full-back Malick Diouf rushing to retrieve it.

But Ismael Saibari, who had been substituted just minutes earlier, also stepped in to mark Diouf closely to prevent him from passing the ball to Mendy. And four ball boys rushed in to snatch the ball from his hands, even if it meant dragging him to the ground.

Fines update:

The PSV Eindhoven player had been fined $100,000 (approximately €86,000), but the fine has been cancelled. He will serve only one suspended match, with the other being a suspended sentence. And what about the ball boys? “The Appeals Panel confirms the responsibility of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) regarding the behavior of the ball boys during this match. The fine imposed on the FRMF for this incident is reduced to $50,000 (approximately €43,000),” writes CAF.

Finally, the lasers that disrupted the final. CAF announced that it has reduced the fine initially imposed on the Moroccan Football Federation: it now stands at $10,000, or just over €8,500. However, the $100,000 fine (approximately €86,000) imposed on Morocco for attempting to interfere with the VAR process remains in place.