Morocco’s Meltdown: Tantrums, Towel Wars and Taking The ‘L’

JOHANNESBURG – AFCON promised pageantry. What it delivered was drama so excessive it made reality TV look subtle. Truly, the Senegalese AFCON win unfolded like a storm in slow motion. Goals ruled out, penalties handed like surprise plot twists, players storming off, and a stadium caught somewhere between awe and disbelief. The world tuned in for sport and got chaos, a masterclass in how a “celebration” can collapse spectacularly under its own hype.

What was meant to be the apex of Africa’s biggest sporting event, the peak of the continent’s largest football tournament, bringing together skill forged from every corner of our highly multicultural context, was swiftly reduced to carnage.

In the aftermath, Morocco’s reaction fuelled the fallout. Formal complaints filed against the champions, an online onslaught of horrendous racial abuse, and grotesque “witchcraft” accusations hurled at Senegalese players and fans, dragged some of the continent’s most violent, dehumanising tropes onto a global stage.

This was further exacerbated when Moroccan media staged a mass walkout during Senegalese head coach Pape Thiaw’s post-match press conference, transforming routine journalism into yet another flashpoint of hostility.

International guests weren’t spared. IShowSpeed, a global YouTube and streaming heavyweight, was reportedly targeted with racist abuse, aggression, and water bottles during the Algeria–Nigeria match in Marrakech, a moment that ricocheted far beyond the stadium.

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To play devil’s advocate, this was going to be an intense showdown, regardless of who or where the final was played. Many rightfully infuriating moments occurred, from disallowed Senegalese goals to Moroccan Brahim Díaz’s dumbfounding missed penalty, forcing both sides to bite the bullet.

Morocco’s post-final meltdown is particularly reminiscent of rapper Drake, who tried to sue Kendrick Lamar after losing a rap beef last year. Like Drake, Morocco must learn to “take the L” (loss) rather than throw their toys out of the cot. The game has been played, the scores are set, and the winner has been crowned. Morocco’s tantrum proves they still haven’t learned to lose like adults.

The childish antics must be called out! From the Towel Wars, where Moroccan substitutes tussled over Senegalese goalkeeper Édouard Mendy’s towel, to the viral standoff when Senegalese players walked off for 16 minutes after protests, only returning after Captain Sadio Mané intervened.

This behaviour wasn’t exclusive to the final. Throughout the tournament, most notably during the Nigeria-Egypt third-place match, Moroccan officials, players, and even ball boys were seen snatching, hiding, and throwing away opposing goalkeepers’ towels in rain-soaked conditions, deliberately sabotaging performance.

Major figures like Moroccan coach Walid Regragui and FIFA President Gianni Infantino have been widely chastised for their “shameful” behaviour, completely undermining the integrity of AFCON.

You can chalk it up to passion, jealousy, or centuries of rivalry. The final match is officially one of the most infamous in AFCON history. As hosts, Morocco delivered nothing short of a catastrophic display. Lack of professionalism, absence of restraint from officials and staff, all made a mockery of the tournament and the sport itself.

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The torrent of racial abuse and antagonism toward Senegalese players and anyone cheering them on speaks volumes. Social media and Moroccan media platforms were filled with racist hatred, a brutal reflection of some Moroccans’ views of fellow Africans: with resentment, hostility, and contempt.

What they claim they would do is frightening, but not new. Racism toward Black Africans in North Africa has always existed, sometimes subtly, sometimes overtly, always with devastating consequences. Reactions like those seen here remind us that past prejudices are never far behind.

In recent years, Morocco has audaciously contested its African identity, claiming to be more Middle Eastern than African, as if geography were optional. This makes the chaos at AFCON feel less like sports and more like a long-running identity struggle.

Following the final, Moroccan player Yasser Zabiri posted, “Africa didn’t deserve Morocco,” while Moroccan MP Mohamed Simou accused Senegal of using “black magic” in the locker room, hardly the first time such accusations have followed a Moroccan loss to a sub-Saharan team.

Losing is one thing. But Morocco took “sore loser” to a new level. The childish theatrics, aggressive posturing, and refusal to handle defeat with dignity didn’t just spoil the match; they hijacked the tournament and tainted the stage meant to showcase boundless African talent.

Senegal’s victory is permanent, but the final match became a stage for everything sport should not be, a warning of how pride, fury, and spectacle can utterly eclipse the game itself. As former athlete Harry Sheehy said, “It is your response to winning and losing that makes you a winner or loser.”

Tswelopele Makoe is a gender and social justice activist and editor at Global South Media Network. She is a researcher, columnist, and an Andrew W Mellon scholar at the Desmond Tutu Centre for Religion and Social Justice, UWC. The views expressed are her own.