As the decisive first-leg encounter in the African Champions League final against Mamelodi Sundowns approaches, the Royal Army Club has escalated its stance, sending an official letter to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) protesting the appointment of Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala to manage the anticipated match on May 17 in Pretoria.

Just days before the awaited showdown, the military team heightened its tone, officially addressing CAF to object to the selection of Ndala to lead the match at Loftus Versfeld Stadium, in a move reflecting the tension preceding the continental final.

According to press reports, the "soldiers" officials raised questions about the criteria for selecting the referee, especially given his absence from the list of referees for the 2026 World Cup, considering that a final of the Champions League's magnitude requires a refereeing team free from controversy. The club also pointed to what it described as an imbalance in the composition of the refereeing teams between the first and second legs.

The Royal Army's objection did not stop there, as it expressed dissatisfaction with relying on a refereeing team mostly from one nationality for the first-leg match, compared to the intention to assign the second leg, scheduled for May 24 in Rabat, to a multinational team, which the club considered a lack of equality and fairness between the encounters.

In its correspondence, the Rabat club recalled Ndala's refereeing precedents, notably his controversial management of the 2025 African Cup of Nations final between Morocco and Senegal, a match that witnessed an unprecedented incident with Senegalese players withdrawing from the Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex pitch following a penalty awarded to the "Atlas Lions".

During that match, the Congolese referee did not stop the game or apply the regulations governing withdrawal cases, nor did he issue any penalties against the Senegalese players, sparking widespread criticism that prompted the Royal Moroccan Football Federation to address CAF at that time.

After the case was referred to the CAF Appeals Committee, it was decided in favor of Morocco, with a "paper victory" declared on March 17, while the case remains legally open as the Senegalese Federation appeals to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, adding to the heated atmosphere before the anticipated final.