The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) suspended, Monday, January 17, the sanction taken by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) against the Senegalese international Pape Gueye. Aged 22, the Olympique de Marseille (OM) striker is currently present at the African Cup of Nations (CAN), in Cameroon, with the Lions of Senegal. According to the international jurisdiction, the player is again at the disposal of his selection for the African competition.
Sanctioned last week due to a dispute over his transfer between OM and English club Watford (Premier League), Pape Gueye “is therefore no longer suspended at this time”, said a CAS spokesperson to Agence France Presse.
On the merits, the court established in Lausanne has not yet ruled on the decision of FIFA, which deprived the striker of all official competitions for four months for having signed a pre-contract with Watford before withdrawing to join Marseille.
The young international, who started his professional career in Le Havre in 2017, simply “achieved a suspensive effect” of this sanction, the time to examine his appeal, specified the CAS spokesperson.
Pape Gueye therefore remains under the threat of a subsequent suspension, while OM have been subject to separate sanctions in the same case: a recruitment ban for twelve months as well as a fine of just over 2 millions of euros. The Marseille club announced on Saturday its intention to appeal.
Upcoming game, Tuesday
Senegal will play its last group match against Malawi on Tuesday on the third day. The Lions and the national Syli of Guinea are almost qualified for the round of 16.
Senegal, although diminished by notable absences, has not yet assumed the status of favorite that many observers attribute to it. The Senegalese selection, which reached the final in the 2002 and 2019 editions, has never won the CAN.
Born in France, Pape Gueye played with the France Under-18 and Under-19 teams before opting for Senegal, his parents’ country of origin, in October 2021.