Exclusive: FAR Rabat, Sundowns Lodge Complaints Over Ndala Appointment Amid CAF Final Referee Crisis

A prominent source within the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has revealed an internal crisis following yesterday's announcement of Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala's appointment to officiate the first leg of the Champions League final between South African club Mamelodi Sundowns and Morocco's FAR Rabat in Pretoria on Sunday, May 17.

The source, speaking exclusively to "El Botola" website, stated that both FAR Rabat and Sundowns submitted official complaints to CAF this Monday morning, expressing reservations about the appointment of the refereeing crew for the Champions League final first leg in South Africa. The source highlighted that doubts have previously been raised about the referee, who was a key figure in the controversial Africa Cup of Nations final between Morocco and Senegal, a case still under dispute at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

The Confederation of African Football had announced the refereeing team for the first leg yesterday.

"El Botola" reported, citing sources within CAF's Refereeing Committee, that the match would be officiated by a Congolese team led by referee Jean-Jacques Ndala, with Joëlian Ngila as first assistant, Gradil Munya as second assistant, and Jesse Muezi as the fourth official.

Sudanese referee Ahmed Abdel Aziz will be in charge of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system, assisted by Libyan Ahmed Al-Shalmani and Zambian Diana Chikotcha.

Maringa Desmond from Zimbabwe has been appointed as the Match Commissioner, with referee and security inspectors selected from Eswatini and Seychelles, and referee assessors from DR Congo and Senegal.

CAF had previously scheduled the first leg of the African Champions League final between South Africa's Mamelodi Sundowns and Morocco's FAR Rabat for Sunday, May 17, instead of the original date of Friday, May 15.

"El Botola" learned from its sources that the match will kick off at 2 PM GMT (3 PM Morocco time), following a request from the South African representative to postpone the encounter by 48 hours due to difficulties in holding it at the earlier scheduled time.

"El Botola" had previously indicated a tendency within CAF to alter the date of the first leg of the final, based on information obtained from its sources within the continental body.