Associated Evidence Record
Evidence for
The Shirt Dispute That Never Became a Match
Companion notes
CAF and CAS rulings over RS Berkane shirts depicting a map including Western Sahara
This companion isolates what is established by the AFP dispatch, the CAF Appeal Board decision, and the CAS media release, and what each source can and cannot prove on its own. It clarifies where the official rulings converge, where the reporting chain differs, and which remedial details remain unstated in the available records.
What the official football bodies actually record
CAF's appeal-board decision is the best source for the competition's formal posture: it identifies the USM Alger–RS Berkane first-leg semi-final as scheduled for 21 April 2024 and confirms that CAF later upheld the Organizing Committee's earlier determination. That makes CAF the authoritative source for the existence of a governing-body ruling, but not for the full chain of events around the stadium dispute or for the detailed content of the original sanction. [S4]
CAS supplies the later arbitral view. Its media release states that, in the 2023/24 Confederation Cup, the shirts carried a territorial map of political character and therefore violated CAF regulations. CAS also narrows the evidentiary issue by noting that the parties did not dispute the shirts showed a map of Morocco including Western Sahara, while separately stating that its award did not affect the tournament results. [S3]
Where AFP adds incident detail and where the reporting chain stops
AFP is the only supplied contemporary report describing the operational trigger: customs officers in Algeria confiscated RS Berkane's shirts because the map included the disputed Western Sahara, after which the team refused to play in alternative shirts and the first leg was canceled. AFP further reports that CAF then awarded RS Berkane a 3-0 victory. That reporting is independent of both football bodies, but it remains a journalistic account of administrative actions rather than the rulings themselves. [S1]
The key limitation is that AFP, CAF, and CAS do not fully overlap on remedy language. AFP narrates the cancellation and award; CAF confirms only the appellate outcome; CAS confirms only the regulatory violation and the lack of effect on competition results. The records therefore establish the shirt dispute and the existence of rulings, but they do not fully disclose every procedural step between cancellation, sanction, and appellate disposition. [S1], [S3], [S4]
Claim provenance
| Claim | Supporting records | Independence | Qualification |
| C1 | [S4] | Confederation of African Football (CAF) | CAF states this fixture was the first leg semi-final scheduled for that date. |
| C2 | [S4] | Confederation of African Football (CAF) | The CAF Appeal Board dismissed USM Alger's appeal and upheld the earlier decision; the precise underlying sanction is not described in this source. |
| C3 | [S1] | AFP | This is AFP's account of the reason given for the shirt seizure. |
| C4 | [S1] | AFP | The source attributes the refusal to Berkane and describes the first leg as canceled. |
| C5 | [S1] | AFP | This is AFP's report of CAF's award, not a match result from play. |
| C6 | [S3] | Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) | CAS says the map represented a territorial dispute that is contested and still unresolved. |
| C7 | [S3] | Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) | This reflects the hearing record as summarized by CAS. |
| C8 | [S3] | Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) | This limits the practical effect of the award on tournament results. |
Source key
The associated evidence packet contains visible source URLs, source roles and the complete claim ledger.
Archival Sources & Verified Claims
Investigative question
What did CAF, CAS, and AFP report happened in the RS Berkane–USM Alger shirt dispute, and what official rulings followed?
Event boundary
From the first-leg CAF Confederation Cup semi-final incident in April 2024 through the CAS media release of 26 February 2025.
Sources
Source 1 — Jersey design sparks second cancellation of Moroccan, Algerian teams
Role: stage0 contemporary reporting
Independent source group: AFP
URL: https://www.trtworld.com/article/17958228
Contemporary AFP reporting on the cancellation, the shirt seizure, the 3-0 award, and the appeal to CAS.
Limit: Journalistic report with attribution to Moroccan television and Algerian radio for some details.
Source 3 — CAS Media Release — FAF & USM Alger v. CAF, FRMF & RS Berkane (10528) — English
Role: stage0 official statement
Independent source group: Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)
Official CAS media release summarizing the hearing, legal reasoning, and disposition of the appeal.
Limit: Unofficial summary for media use; full award to be published later.
Source 4 — CAF Appeal Board Decision on the USM Alger / RS Berkane matter
Role: stage0 official statement
Independent source group: Confederation of African Football (CAF)
Official CAF appeal-board disposition on the USM Alger matter.
Limit: Brief ruling notice without detailed reasoning.
Claim ledger
| Item | Claim | Support | Qualification |
| Claim 1 | The first-leg CAF Confederation Cup semi-final between USM Alger and RS Berkane was scheduled for 21 April 2024. | CAF Appeal Board Decision on the USM Alger / RS Berkane matter | CAF states this fixture was the first leg semi-final scheduled for that date. |
| Claim 2 | CAF later upheld a decision from its Organizing Committee concerning the incident in that first-leg match. | CAF Appeal Board Decision on the USM Alger / RS Berkane matter | The CAF Appeal Board dismissed USM Alger's appeal and upheld the earlier decision; the precise underlying sanction is not described in this source. |
| Claim 3 | AFP reported that customs officers in Algeria confiscated RS Berkane's shirts because they carried a map of Morocco that included the disputed Western Sahara. | Jersey design sparks second cancellation of Moroccan, Algerian teams | This is AFP's account of the reason given for the shirt seizure. |
| Claim 4 | AFP reported that RS Berkane refused to take to the pitch in other shirts and that the first leg was canceled after the confiscation dispute. | Jersey design sparks second cancellation of Moroccan, Algerian teams | The source attributes the refusal to Berkane and describes the first leg as canceled. |
| Claim 5 | AFP reported that CAF awarded RS Berkane a 3-0 victory for the first leg after the cancellation. | Jersey design sparks second cancellation of Moroccan, Algerian teams | This is AFP's report of CAF's award, not a match result from play. |
| Claim 6 | The CAS panel ruled on 26 February 2025 that the RS Berkane shirts for the 2023/24 CAF Confederation Cup were contrary to CAF regulations because they displayed a territorial map of a political nature. | CAS Media Release — FAF & USM Alger v. CAF, FRMF & RS Berkane (10528) — English | CAS says the map represented a territorial dispute that is contested and still unresolved. |
| Claim 7 | CAS said it was not disputed by the parties that the shirts displayed a map of Morocco including Western Sahara that did not correspond to the official map of Morocco as published by the United Nations. | CAS Media Release — FAF & USM Alger v. CAF, FRMF & RS Berkane (10528) — English | This reflects the hearing record as summarized by CAS. |
| Claim 8 | CAS stated that its award had no effect on the results of the CAF Confederations Cup 2023/24. | CAS Media Release — FAF & USM Alger v. CAF, FRMF & RS Berkane (10528) — English | This limits the practical effect of the award on tournament results. |
Evidence assessment
AFP, CAF, and CAS consistently document a shirt-design dispute in the 2023/24 CAF Confederation Cup involving RS Berkane shirts showing a map of Morocco including Western Sahara. AFP reported the first leg was canceled after Algerian officials confiscated the shirts and Berkane refused an alternative kit; CAF later awarded Berkane a 3-0 victory, while CAF and then CAS issued formal rulings addressing the legality of the shirts. CAS ultimately said the shirts were contrary to CAF regulations but that its award had no effect on the tournament results.