Senegal survives tumultuous final to win Africa Cup of Nations

Just one player stayed behind: Senegal legend Sadio Mané. While the stadium descended into chaos, Mané was a beacon of calm and reason. It was Mané who cajoled his teammates back onto the field to end the match; it was Mané who stood in solidarity with referee Ndala before the fateful penalty was kicked.

With 20 minutes of chaos in the rearview mirror, Morocco star Brahim Diaz finally stepped up to take the penalty. He focused, exhaled...and delivered a sad Panenka directly into the arms of Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

No goal. 0-0. The stadium roared in disbelief. Referee Ndala blew his whistle, and the two teams, surrounded by rioting fans and dangling at the end of their emotional ropes, stared down the barrel of 30 minutes of extra time.

Senegalese fortitude

Tactics went out the window as Senegal and Morocco entered extra time. Both teams threw everything they had at the match, but it was Senegal who managed to break through first. Midfielder Pape Gueye fired a stinging shot past goalkeeper Yassine Bounou to open the scoring and tip the match in Senegal's favor. It was the first goal Morocco conceded from open play all tournament.

In the end, Gueye's strike was enough. Senegal survived extra time with its one-goal advantage intact.

A step back for Morocco

This AFCON final loss shouldn't derail Morocco's progress as a team: it remains one of the strongest sides in Africa and will be a sleeper hit at next summer's World Cup.

It should, however, derail Morocco's progress as a hosting nation. The country aimed to use AFCON to show off its impressive infrastructure before joint-hosting the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal. While the stadiums were spectacular and the pitches pristine, Morocco's poor handling of this final match will leave many wondering if it's truly ready to host a tournament as testy as the World Cup. The lack of security in the stands—and the behavior of the riot police tasked with maintaining it—was nothing short of embarrassing. African fans deserve better than what they were given here.

AFCON has always been one of the world's wildest, most unpredictable tournaments, and this edition was no different. Senegal survived the chaos and and emerged as a worthy champion...but it's a shame it had to survive chaos quite like this.