In Romans 12:19, we are told that vengeance is God’s. People are warned against personal vengeance – a common ‘below the belt’ tactic.

Below the belt phrase originates from boxing rules and describes tactics that are considered low, dishonest, or dishonorable.

This is exactly what the Morocco Football Federation has done to CAF and the entire football fraternity in the African continent.

In life we are often told not to put all our eggs in one basket. This is because if the basket eventually slips and falls, we may lose all the eggs.

CAF failed to follow this natural rule in the case of the 2026 Women’s Africa Football Cup of Nations, WAFCON which it had scheduled to hold this month in Morocco.

CAF gave Morocco the hosting right for the 2024 WAFCON, the 2025 AFCON and also looked up to them to host the 2026 WAFCON.

They were hailed by Africans and non-Africans alike for the almost flawless organization of the 2024 WAFCON and the 2025 AFCON.

However, the only flaw noticed during both competitions was the desperation of the Moroccans to win both events as host.

In the final of the 2024 WAFCON, their team, the Lionesses were 2-0 up against the Super Falcons of Nigeria who turned the table around and denied the Moroccans the title on home soil. They protested the officiating, claiming the referee favoured the Nigerian ladies by refusing them a penalty in the game.

So when they again hosted another CAF event, the 2025 AFCON, they were expectant, hoping to win their second title in 50 years and therefore planned a grand celebration.

The expectations among the people and the football officials especially were really high. Why not? Their football was really on the high. They were still savouring the record of their team, the Atlas Lions’ feat as the first African side to reach the World Cup semi finals.

Again their U-20 male team became only the second African side after Ghana to win the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

The organization of the 2025 AFCON was hailed around the world that people didn’t look closely at the officiating until it entered the knockout stages when matches involving Morocco started getting controversial. In the semi finals against Nigeria, it wasn’t too glaring but not unnoticeable. A couple of days before the final, Senegal cried out against the antics of the Moroccans who they accused of preparing the ground for their victory. The final was an anti-climax as the controversy that led Senegal to walk out of the pitch before coming back to conclude it and eventually won brought the game to disrepute.

The Moroccans are still sulking over the loss to Senegal and have shown they are sore losers following actions they have taken since then.

They jailed 18 Senegalese fans who they accused of hooliganism even though the fans’ action were not life threatening in anyway.

The worst they could have done was to slam a fine on the fans to serve as a deterrent to them and others instead of throwing them into jail.

As if that wasn’t enough, they waited till very late in the day to hit CAF (who they believed were too linient on Senegal) below the belt by pulling out of hosting the 2026 WAFCON after teams had prepared emotionally and invested financially to participate. Shockingly no serious word of reprimand has come from the Patrice Motsepe-led CAF executive committee against the Moroccan Federation till now.

This is even as South Africa read Morocco’s antics and offered to step in to host the event in the likelihood that they withdrew for any reason. Africans are still waiting to hear what CAF would do because there is a precedent on such late withdrawal by a host or participating country.

In 1995, Nigeria’s maximum ruler, General Sani Abacha withdrew the Super Eagles from defending the AFCON title they won in Tunisia in 1994 when South Africa hosted it in 1996 because Nelson Mandela, then South Africa’s president, condemned his action to kill Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni men.

CAF reacted by sanctioning Nigeria for withdrawing at the last minute after the draws were done and it was too close to ask another country to step in.

The penalty was that the Super Eagles were banned from participating in the 1998 edition which Burkina Faso hosted. Ironically, as host, this will not be the first time Morocco would be treating CAF with levity after agreeing to host its events. In 2015, they were supposed to host the AFCON but pulled out, citing the outbreak of the Ebola virus. As a result Morocco were banned from the 2017 and 2019 AFCON tournaments and fined $1 million by CAF.

According to its regulations in Article 92.3, a nation that withdraws from hosting less than one year before the finals faces a fine of $500,000 and a suspension from the next edition. Why Morocco were fined double of the stipulated penalty and banned for two editions could not be ascertained but that they got punished and fined is a fact. At that time Cameroon’s Issa Hayatou was CAF president.

This time, South African billionaire businessman, Patrice Motsepe is heading CAF and he is a known lover of the Maghreb country which always comes to the rescue of the football body in view of many countries not having standard facilities to host its events.

That Motsepe turned deaf ears to the willingness of South Africa to step in as host is giving stakeholders worries whether he would apply the rules about withdrawals to the letter. Africa is watching and waiting to see what sanction(s) would be meted to Morocco for throwing spanners into the WAFCON that a lot had gone into its preparation by CAF.