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Super Eagles stars Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman have been left out of the 10-man shortlist for the 2026 CAF Men’s Player of the Year award.
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Senegal forward Sadio Mané, Morocco defender Achraf Hakimi, and Ivory Coast winger Amad Diallo are among the leading contenders for the prestigious individual award.
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Morocco and Senegal boast the highest number of representatives on the shortlist, with three players each, while Ivory Coast, DR Congo, Ghana and South Africa also have players in contention for the continent’s biggest individual football honour.
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CAF has also unveiled nominees for several other categories, including Men’s Young Player of the Year, Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year, and Men’s National Team of the Year.
November 04, (THEWILL) – Super Eagles duo Victor Osimhen, Ademola Lookman missed out on CAF men’s player of the year shortlist to cap a disappointing year for Nigerian football.
Following the team’s failure to qualify for the World Cup, no single Super Eagles player was deem worthy of a place in the 10-man list.
CAF announced the nominees on Wednesday with Senegal forward Sadio Mane, Morocco defender Achraf Hakimi and Ivory Coast winger Amad Diallo making the cut, alongside seven other players
The full list is made up of Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast), Yoane Wissa (DR Congo), Antoine Semenyo (Ghana), Ismael Saibari, Achraf Hakimi, Brahim Diaz (Morocco), Ismaila Sarr, Pape Gueye, Sadio Mane (Senegal) and Teboho Mokoena (South Africa).
Other categories announced include the Men’s Young Player of the Year, Men’s National Team of the Year, Men’s Club of the Year and Men’s Coach of the Year.
The 10 nominees for the Young Player of the Year award are Ibrahim Maza, Christian Kofane, Christ Inao, Yan Diomande, Hamza Abdelkarim, Caleb Yirenkyi, Ismaël Kamissoko, Abdellah Ouazane, Ayoub Bouaddi and Ibrahim Mbaye.
The 10 nominees for the Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year award are Oussama Benbot (Algeria), Vozinha (Cabo Verde), Yahia Fofana (Ivory Coast), Lionel Mpasi (DR Congo), El Mahdy Soliman, Mostafa Shobeir (Egypt), Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti, Yassine Bounou (Morocco), Édouard Mendy (Senegal) and Ronwen Williams (South Africa).
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For the Men’s National Team of the Year, Algeria, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia made the shortlist.
For the Men’s National Team of the Year, Algeria, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia made the shortlist.
The prestigious awards ceremony will take place in Lagos, Nigeria, on Monday, 07 December 2026, bringing together Africa’s leading football personalities to celebrate outstanding achievements at club and international level.
- Amad Diallo (Côte d’Ivoire/Manchester United)
- Yoane Wissa (DR Congo/Newcastle United)
- Antoine Semenyo (Ghana/Manchester City)
- Ismael Saibari (Morocco/Bayern Munich)
- Achraf Hakimi (Morocco/Paris Saint-Germain)
- Brahim Diaz (Morocco/Real Madrid)
- Ismaila Sarr (Senegal/Crystal Palace)
- Pape Gueye (Senegal/Villarreal)
- Sadio Mané (Senegal/Al-Nassr)
- Teboho Mokoena (South Africa/Mamelodi Sundowns)
