{"id":67204,"date":"2026-03-18T15:59:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T15:59:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/sadio-mane-criticizes-caf-for-corruption-in-afcon"},"modified":"2026-03-18T16:46:50","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T16:46:50","slug":"sadio-mane-criticizes-caf-for-corruption-in-afcon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/sadio-mane-criticizes-caf-for-corruption-in-afcon","title":{"rendered":"Sadio Man\u00e9 Criticizes CAF for Corruption in AFCON"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"ap-article-header-tag\"> <strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Lesotho. <\/strong> <\/span>Senegal captain Sadio Mane\u0301 has issued a strongly worded statement condemning the Confederation of African Football\u2019s (CAF) recent decision, describing it as a damaging moment for the integrity of the game on the continent.<\/p>\n<p>Reacting to the ruling, Mane\u0301 did not hold back in his criticism, expressing deep frustration over what he perceives as systemic issues affecting African football.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened has gone too far. This is not the football we fight for, not the Africa we believe in,\u201d the forward stated.<\/p>\n<p>The former African Player of the Year went further, alleging that corruption is undermining the sport and eroding the passion of supporters across the continent.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is too much corruption in our game, and it\u2019s killing the passion of millions of fans across the continent. Players give everything on the pitch, but decisions off it are deciding matches and trophies,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>Mane\u0301\u2019s remarks come in the aftermath of CAF\u2019s controversial ruling, which has already sparked widespread debate within football circles. His intervention is likely to amplify scrutiny on the governing body and its disciplinary processes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m deeply disappointed not just for Senegal, but for African football as a whole. We deserve better. The fans deserve fairness, transparency, and respect,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n<p>The statement from one of Africa\u2019s most influential football figures is expected to resonate strongly among players, supporters, and stakeholders, potentially intensifying calls for greater accountability and reform within CAF.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ap-article-footer-note\">Find more news and analyses on <span class=\"ap-highlight-country\">Lesotho<\/span> on the <span class=\"ap-highlight-brand\">Africa Press<\/span> website<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Lesotho. Senegal captain Sadio Mane\u0301 has issued a strongly worded statement condemning the Confederation of African Football\u2019s (CAF) recent decision, describing it as a damaging moment for the integrity of the game on the continent. Reacting to the ruling, Mane\u0301 did not hold back in his criticism, expressing deep frustration over what he [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":67203,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[245],"class_list":["post-67204","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-lesotho"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Sadio Man\u00e9 Criticizes CAF for Corruption in AFCON - Lesotho<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"-article-header-tag&quot;&gt; Africa-Press - Lesotho. 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