Moroccan names nominated to be the best in Africa

Nov 4, 2026

The list of nominees for the 2026 African Player of the Year award includes three players from Morocco: right-back Achraf Hakimi, last year's winner, and forwards Ismaïl Sabiri and Brahim Diaz, as announced by the continental federation on Wednesday.

The Moroccan trio delivered outstanding performances with their national team during the Africa Cup of Nations held in the Kingdom at the end of last year and the beginning of this year, reaching the final where Senegal triumphed with a single goal after extra time, thanks to a strike from Bamba Dieng, following a controversial end to regular time.

Several Senegalese players left the pitch in protest over a late penalty awarded to Morocco, which Diaz missed after the game resumed.

However, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) annulled the match result in March, awarding Morocco a 3-0 victory and the title, prompting Senegal to challenge the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

The Moroccan trio also shone at the World Cup held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, where the "Atlas Lions" reached the quarter-finals, with Sabiri being their top scorer with three goals, before suffering an injury in the match against the Netherlands in the Round of 16, which sidelined him from the knockout stage against Canada and the quarter-finals against France.

After an impressive season, Sabiri transferred to Bayern Munich in a massive deal, while Diaz represents Real Madrid and was a key player in Morocco's World Cup journey.

Hakimi secured his second consecutive UEFA Champions League title with Paris Saint-Germain, along with the French league title.

The list also features three players from Senegal: Villarreal midfielder Pape Gueye, Al Nassr forward Sadio Mané, and Crystal Palace midfielder Ismaïla Sarr, alongside Ivorian Amad Diallo (Manchester United), Congolese Yannick Bolasie (Newcastle), Ghanaian Antoine Semenyo (Manchester City), and South African Teboho Mokoena (Mamelodi Sundowns).

Waleed and Wahbi

Former Liverpool star and current Trabzonspor player, Egyptian international Mohamed Salah, is absent from the list of nominees for the award he won twice in 2017 and 2018.

Moroccans Waleed Regragui and Mohamed Wahbi, along with Egyptians Hossam Hassan and Moataz Gamal, are competing for the Best Coach award, alongside Cape Verde's Pedro Brito "Bubista," Frenchman Sébastien Desabre, Senegalese Pape Thiaw and Lamine Ndiaye, and Portuguese Miguel Cardoso and Alexandre Santos.

The shortlist for the Best Goalkeeper award includes five Arab players: Moroccans Yassine Bounou (Al Hilal) and Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti (Raja Casablanca), Egyptians Mostafa Shobeir (Al Ahly) and Mohamed Soliman (Zamalek), and Algerian Osama Ben Boua (USM Alger).

The list also includes Vozinha from Cape Verde (Colo-Colo, Chile), Ivorian Youssouf Fofana (Çaykur Rizespor), South African Ronwen Williams (Sundowns), Senegalese Edouard Mendy (Al Ahli, Saudi Arabia), and Congolese Lionel Mpasi (Le Havre, France).

The competition for the Best Young Player award is limited to four Arab players: Moroccans Ayyoub Bouaddi (Manchester City) and Abdallah Wazani (Ajax), Algerian Ibrahim Mazah (Bayer Leverkusen), and Egyptian Hamza Abdel Karim (Barcelona), alongside Senegalese Ibrahim Mbaye (Aston Villa), Ivorians Yan Diedhiou (Real Madrid) and Christ Einao Olai (Fiorentina), Malian Ismail Kamissoko (Stars Academy in Mandeh), Ghanaian Caleb Yerenkyi (Coventry), and Cameroonian Christian Kofan (Bayer Leverkusen).

The list of nominees for the Best Local Player award includes eight Arab players: Moroccans Mohamed Harimat (Raja Casablanca, currently playing for Al Shamal, Qatar), Soufiane El Moudane (Olympic Safi, currently with Hassania Agadir), and Munir Chouiar (Nahdat Berkane), Egyptians Mohamed Shehata (Zamalek) and Mahmoud Hassan "Trezeguet" (Al Ahly, currently with Al Riyadh, Saudi Arabia), Algerians Abdel Nour Belhassini (Jeunesse de Kabylie) and Ahmed Khaldi (USM Alger), and Sudanese Abdel Raouf Yaqub Omar Taha (Al Hilal), alongside South Africans Teboho Mokoena and Kolisso Modao (both from Sundowns).

The national teams of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Egypt are among the nominees for the Best National Team award, along with Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Senegal, and South Africa.

The awards ceremony will take place in Lagos, Nigeria, on December 7.