President orders match to go to penalties after getting bored midway

The football world was left stunned last weekend after the President ordered Mauritania Super Cup final to go to penalties in the 63rd minutes because he was bored with the proceedings.

According to Metro.co.uk, President Ould Abdel Aziz is said to have called for penalty shootouts 18 minutes after the restart with the competing teams – FC Tevragh-Zeina and ACS Ksar – tied at 1-1.

President Aziz reportedly grew impatient with the tempo of the match and was wary of the match going on into extra times. Tevragh-Zeian won the match.

The decision has elicited wide condemnation with football fans accusing the president of flouting match rules.

The Mauritania football federation has however denied the claims saying the reports circulating in the media are fabricated, the Guardian has reported.

In a statement, the federation president Ahmed Ould Abderrahmane said: “I deny in the strongest terms the intervention of the President of the Republic. The decision was made due to organisational issues in accordance with the president and the coaches of the two teams.”

Ksar fans have filed an appealed with the federation seeking a ruling on the matter.