Patrice Motsepe, president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), arrived in Dakar in the early hours of Wednesday. He was personally welcomed by Abdoulaye Fall, president of the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF), according to a statement from the CAF.

The high-profile visit comes as Motsepe prepares to meet with Senegalese president Bassirou Diomaye Faye later today. The CAF delegation will also visit Gorée Island before holding a press conference at 5:30 PM to address pressing issues in African football, including the controversial decision to award the 2025 CAN title to Morocco.

a diplomatic mission to ease tensions

Motsepe announced in late March that he would visit both Senegal and Morocco to emphasize the need for “working together to develop African football“. This gesture follows intense criticism directed at CAF since its appeals committee controversially ruled to strip Senegal of its African Cup of Nations title, originally won on the field, and award it to Morocco instead. The Senegalese Football Federation has since filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), with a ruling expected in the coming months.

The Senegalese government escalated the dispute on March 18 by calling for an international investigation into “suspicions of corruption within CAF’s governing bodies“. In response, Motsepe assured that no African nation received preferential treatment, highlighting the independence of CAF’s disciplinary bodies.