Gambiaj.com – (DAKAR, Senegal) – President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has extended financial and social support to the 18 Senegalese football supporters who were detained in Morocco following the final of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
While three of the supporters had already returned to Senegal earlier, the remaining 15 arrived in Dakar during the night between Saturday and Sunday after benefiting from a royal pardon granted by King Mohammed VI.
Ahead of the Muslim feast of Tabaski, President Faye offered each of the former detainees an envelope containing two million CFA francs and a sheep, fulfilling a commitment he had made during their official reception in Dakar.
Most of the supporters had spent around 125 days in detention in Morocco before their release and return home. The gesture by the Senegalese president is being viewed as part of broader efforts by the state to assist the former detainees with their reintegration and immediate social needs.
During their reception in Dakar, President Faye had assured the supporters that the Senegalese government would continue to stand by them, particularly in social and financial matters. The latest support package is seen as the implementation of that promise.
The return of the supporters involved coordinated diplomatic and sporting efforts by Senegalese authorities. Foreign Affairs Minister Cheikh Niang and Senegal’s ambassador to Morocco, Seynabou Dial, were among officials involved in monitoring the case and facilitating the supporters’ return.
Senegal’s football authorities also played a role in the process. The Senegalese Football Federation, led by Abdoulaye Fall, worked alongside state authorities throughout the case.
The supporters’ detention had attracted significant public attention in Senegal, with calls for state intervention intensifying over the past several months before their eventual release through the Moroccan royal pardon.
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