CAF Awards: The 10 African Player of the Year nominees revealed! (Official)

The shortlist for the leading individual prize at the 2026 CAF Awards has been confirmed. Three Moroccans and three Senegalese players feature among the ten nominees, alongside representatives from Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Ghana and South Africa. The winner will be announced in Lagos, Nigeria, on 7 December.

The ten 2026 African Player of the Year nominees

• 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 Mane (Senegal, Al-Nassr)
• Teboho Mokoena (South Africa, Mamelodi Sundowns)

Their 2025-26 club and international campaigns

Amad Diallo made 33 appearances for Manchester United, scoring twice and providing three assists. For Côte d’Ivoire, he registered three goals and one assist during a run to the AFCON quarter-finals, before scoring twice at the World Cup. The Elephants were eliminated by Norway in the round of 32.

Yoane Wissa recorded 28 appearances, three goals and one assist for Newcastle. He then scored three times for DR Congo at the World Cup, where the Leopards were knocked out by England in the round of 32. Earlier in the year, they had reached the last 16 of the 2025 AFCON.

Antoine Semenyo started the season at Bournemouth before moving to Manchester City in January. Across the two clubs, he amassed 17 goals and four assists in 37 Premier League appearances. Ghana missed AFCON but returned to the World Cup and reached the round of 32, where the Black Stars lost to Colombia.

Ismael Saibari played a major role in PSV Eindhoven’s Dutch league title. The Morocco midfielder ended the campaign with 18 goals and eight assists in 34 appearances across all competitions before joining Bayern Munich. With Morocco, he finished as an AFCON runner-up and reached the World Cup quarter-finals, scoring three goals at the global tournament.

Achraf Hakimi, the 2025 winner, added further silverware with Paris Saint-Germain. The Morocco captain won Ligue 1 and a second consecutive Champions League as part of a five-trophy season for PSG. Internationally, he led the Atlas Lions to the AFCON final and the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup.

Brahim Diaz played 30 La Liga matches for Real Madrid, scoring once and delivering six assists, while also making 12 Champions League appearances. He finished as the 2025 AFCON top scorer with five goals and was central to Morocco’s run to the final, before helping the Atlas Lions reach another World Cup quarter-final.

Ismaila Sarr enjoyed an outstanding season with Crystal Palace. He scored 21 goals in 43 matches across all competitions and won the Conference League, finishing as both the tournament’s nine-goal top scorer and Player of the Season. With Senegal, he lifted AFCON before a World Cup round-of-32 defeat by Belgium.

Pape Gueye contributed five goals and two assists in 30 La Liga games for Villarreal. His defining moment came at AFCON, where he scored three goals, including the extra-time winner against Morocco in the final. He also struck twice at the World Cup, which Senegal exited in the round of 32.

Sadio Mane helped Al-Nassr secure their first Saudi league title since 2019, scoring in the decisive victory over Damac. He was also a leading figure in Senegal’s continental triumph and captained the Lions of Teranga to the round of 32 at the World Cup.

Teboho Mokoena won the CAF Champions League with Mamelodi Sundowns. His goal in the second leg of the final against AS FAR proved decisive in the South African side’s aggregate triumph. With Bafana Bafana, he reached the AFCON round of 16 and the World Cup round of 32, scoring his first goal at the global tournament.

The ten Goalkeeper of the Year nominees

CAF has also released the shortlist for the African Goalkeeper of the Year award. Morocco and Egypt each have two representatives among the ten nominees:

• Oussama Benbot (Algeria)
• Vozinha (Cape Verde)
• Yahia Fofana (Côte d’Ivoire)
• Lionel Mpasi (DR Congo)
• El Mahdy Soliman (Egypt)
• Mostafa Shobeir (Egypt)
• Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti (Morocco)
• Yassine Bounou (Morocco)
• Edouard Mendy (Senegal)
• Ronwen Williams (South Africa)

The Interclub Player of the Year nominees

The category recognising performances in African club competitions also features ten players. Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, South Africa and Sudan are represented:

• Abdennour Belhocini (CR Belouizdad)
• Ahmed Khaldi (USM Alger)
• Mahmoud Hassan “Trezeguet” (Al Ahly)
• Mohamed Shehata (Zamalek)
• Mohamed Rabie Hrimat (AS FAR)
• Mounir Chouiar (RS Berkane)
• Sofian El Moudane (Olympique de Safi)
• Khuliso Mudau (Mamelodi Sundowns)
• Teboho Mokoena (Mamelodi Sundowns)
• Abdel Raouf (Al Hilal SC)

Read also : CAF Awards 2026: DR Congo, Morocco and Senegal among 10 national team nominees

Mahdi Zakaria LAZRI |

Editor

Football web writer creating digital sports content with a focus on news, analysis and stories that reflect passion, accuracy and objectivity.

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