Out of the seven centre referees, 10 assistant referees, and two Video Assistant Referees (VAR) that FIFA picked from across Africa to offficiate the upcoming FIFA World Cup, a notable miss has been the name of Jean-Jacques Ndala, who officiated the 2025 AFCON final.
The Congelese referee is a foremost African referee and his ommission has raised eyebrows within fans and stakeholders of the African football competition. His omission came after he was caught up within the chaos that took place during the 2026 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) final between Senegal and Morocco.
Recall that ENigeria Newspaper reported that Senegalese players chose to walk off the pitch in protest after Ndala had decided to award Morocco a penalty. Captain Sadio Mane stayed back and urged his teammates to return to the pitch. Amid another behind-the-scene discussions between officials and staff of both nations, the play resumed but Morocco, through Real Madrid’s Brahim Diaz, lost the penalty.
While Senegal would go on to win the trophy, Morocco, on March 17, 2026, was formally declared the winner of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) reversed the initial outcome. Due to a forfeiture verdict, Senegal, who had initially won the match 1-0 on January 18, 2026, lost the title.
Fans believe that the omission is a reflection of how Ndala’s decision was not respected after CAF ruled out Senegal’s victory and handed it to Morocco.
The seven centre referees that FIFA has picked include; Omar Artan (Somalia), Dahane Beida (Mauritania), Mustapha Ghorbal (Algeria), Amin Mohamed (Egypt), Abongile Tom (South Africa), Jalal Jayeed (Morocco) and Pierre Atcho (Gabon).
The 10 assistant referees include; Mostafa Akarkad (Morocco), Ahmed Hossam (Egypt), Mahmoud, Abdouelregal (Egypt), Amos Abeigne (Gabon), Boris Ditsoga (Gabon), Mokrane Gourari (Algeria), Elvis Noupue (Cameroon), Siwela Zakhele (South Africa), Abbes Akram (Algeria) and Jerson Santos (Angola)
The two VAR officials are Ashour Mahmoud (Egypt) and Hamza El Fariq (Morocco).
