Rabat – The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has reportedly settled the controversy surrounding Algeria’s decision to prevent RS Berkane from playing the first leg of its CAF Confederation Cup semi-finals against the Algerian club USM Alger.
Moroccan news outlet Le360 said today that CAF has officially declared RS Berkane as winning the abandoned match 3-0.
The news comes after the Algerian regime sparked frustration among football fans last week after disallowing the Moroccan club to wear their official jersey featuring Morocco’s full map.
The club was also stranded in an Algerian airport where their equipment, including the jerseys, was confiscated by Algerian security forces.
CAF responded to the controversial episode by affirming the legitimacy of RS Berkane’s jersey, and urging the Algerian football federation to release the team’s confiscated equipment.
In light of the controversy, CAF announced on Sunday that the game was canceled apologizing for the inconvenience caused to its sponsors, TV partners, and supporters.
On Tuesday, Algeria’s regime reiterated its politicization of sports approach after the Algerian U-17 national handball team withdrew from the Arab Championship in protest at the Moroccan team wearing a jersey featuring a full map of Morocco.
The match between Algeria and Morocco was set to take place on Tuesday, but the Algerian team’s boycott of the tournament left the Moroccan team without opponents.
Ennahar Online, an Algerian regime-affiliated television channel, announced that the team would boycott the match if the Moroccan team wore the Moroccan full map, describing it as a “fake map.”
This is not surprising, given that the Algerian regime continues to oppose Morocco’s territorial integrity by supporting the Polisario Front, a separatist group that seeks to challenge Morocco’s sovereignty over its southern provinces in Western Sahara.
