Football has always been more than just a game. It has served as a platform to unite people, break down barriers, and, at times, reflect deeper political tensions. But when the line between sport and geopolitical conflict is deliberately blurred, it is the very essence of sport that is at risk.
This is exactly what we are witnessing in the early days of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations 2025, organized by CAF in Morocco. Instead of allowing the competition to celebrate African women’s talent, the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) has imported its political conflicts into a sporting tournament—threatening the fragile unity built through football.
A Series of Calculated Provocations
The facts speak for themselves:
• The Algerian women’s national team refused to take part in the official group photo alongside the Moroccan team.
• Then, the FAF published official content using a modified Women’s AFCON logo, removing all reference to Morocco as the host country.
This behavior goes beyond the boundaries of sporting ethics.
It is a deliberate act of symbolic erasure, designed to imply that the competition is illegitimate simply because it is hosted by Morocco.
The Pitch Is Not an Extension of the Border
Every country has its wounds, memories, and diplomatic struggles. But sport exists precisely to transcend these divides. It is a space for peace, temporary equality, and shared rules.
When Algeria chooses to turn this common ground into a stage for diplomatic hostility, it violates a sacred principle: that sport is a refuge beyond political tensions.
“If sport becomes a battlefield, it loses its power to heal,” said a former sports envoy of the African Union. “It becomes just another weapon, rather than a bridge between peoples.”
Who Pays the Price? The Players.
They are the first victims of this drift. These women who have sacrificed, fought, and persevered—often in the shadows—to finally earn a place on a continental stage. And now that the spotlight is theirs, it’s no longer their goals that are being celebrated—it’s the conflicts that dominate the headlines.
“We didn’t come here for this,” said a West African player. “We came to play. Not to carry the weight of tensions that aren’t ours.”
What This Means for CAF
CAF was created to ensure order, rules, and the credibility of modern African football. But if it allows this kind of behavior to go unpunished, it becomes complicit in its own weakening. A governing body that does not enforce its own rules fails to protect its tournaments, its players, and its host countries.
The real question is: Does CAF still have the power to enforce its decisions against a federation acting on its own terms?
What This Means for Africa
This tournament was meant to showcase Africa’s greatest strengths: talent, energy, and solidarity. Instead, it has become a display of disunity when one actor refuses to abide by shared rules. And what’s most painful is that this act does not only harm Morocco—it betrays the entire African project.
Silence Is Not a Solution
This is not a call for escalation. It is not a call for exclusion. It is a call for order.
Because if a federation can behave this way without consequence, then the AFCON, in its current form, becomes a vulnerable structure.
“When you enter a competition, you don’t just represent your flag. You carry the dream of an entire continent.”
A Dangerous Precedent Not to Be Normalized
If CAF tolerates the logo modification and the boycott of a symbolic moment today, what will it tolerate tomorrow?
• National anthems being cut off?
• Referees challenged at every match?
• Finals refused for political reasons?
What Algeria has done is not just an incident. It is a precedent.
And what CAF does—or does not do—will determine whether Africa can defend itself against this kind of drift.
English 
French