The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has banned Morocco head coach Walid Regragui for four matches, with two suspended, following his heated confrontation with DR Congo captain Chancel Mbemba.
He will also have to pay a fine due to the incidents that took place between the coach of the Moroccan side and Chancel Mbemba, DR Congo’s captain.
The incident occurred after the teams’ Africa Cup of Nations match on Sunday, which ended 1-1. Regragui and Mbemba were seen exchanging words aggressively after the final whistle, leading to a melee between both sets of players and staff.
According to Mbemba, Regragui directed racist language towards him during the exchange. However, the Morocco coach strongly denied those allegations in a press conference.
CAF is yet to confirm details of the ban, which the Moroccan Football Federation has vowed to appeal. They criticised the “unjust decision”, insisting Regragui did not violate the spirit of sportsmanship.
TV replays of the incident show Regragui approaching Mbemba after the game while the DR Congo defender was on his knees praying. When Mbemba took Regragui’s hand, the Moroccan coach kept hold of it and appeared to say “Look at me.”
An incensed Mbemba angrily pulled away and called for the video assistant referee before players from both teams got involved in the ensuing melee.
The player’s Instagram account was subjected to a stream of racist abuse, while Regragui said he received death threats in the fallout.
The suspensions now put Regragui’s participation in Morocco’s remaining AFCON matches in serious doubt. They face Zambia in their final group encounter today.
Regragui, who guided Morocco to the World Cup semifinals last year, could miss their entire knockout stage campaign if the ban is upheld. CAF is expected to provide more details soon.
But the Atlas Lions are hoping to get the decision overturned on appeal. The spat has cast an unsavory shadow over the tournament in recent days.
