Rabat – French cable television channel Canal + said that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has decided to exclude Morocco from the Africa Cup of Nations in 2017 and 2019, in addition to paying a $50,000 fine under regulation and an additional $20 million to repair the damage sustained.
Morocco has already been disqualified from the 2015 African Cup of Nations following requests to postpone the tournament over fears of the Ebola virus.
Asked by media24 website about the veracity of the news, Junior Binyam, media director of CAF, has denied categorically. He added that “the concern of the organizing committee is to organize the CAN, not to suspend Morocco.”
“This is not an emergency,” said Binyam. “The organizing committee will probably meet on December 1st in Malabo for the draw which will take place two days later. There will be no decision by then,” he added.
After being barred of hosting the African Cup of Nations, reports suggested that Morocco will be subject to harsh sanctions by CAF and its president Issa Hayatou.
Among the possible sanctions that were put forward is the suspension from two editions of the CAN and $20 million in penalties. However, the staggering figure remains inaccurate given the fact that no specific amount of penalties was officially released yet by the governing body of African football.
