The Senegal national football team is in the spotlight with comments from Walid Regragui on the 2025 AFCON final and the arrival of new coach Patrick Vieira. The Lions of Teranga, currently third in their World Cup group with 3 points, inherit a rejuvenated squad after the tournament.

Former Morocco coach Walid Regragui revisited the controversial 2025 Africa Cup of Nations final in an interview on Sunday. He called the event a "disgrace" and lamented scenes that had "no place on a football pitch". Regragui pointed to the behavior of Senegalese players, who left the field, and stated that African football was the "big loser" in the affair.

The match, won on the pitch by Senegal in January 2025 before CAF awarded the title to Morocco on a technicality two months later, is still awaiting a decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Regragui said his side would accept the court's verdict. This controversy comes as the Senegalese team shows mixed form, with two consecutive losses and a record of 2 wins and 3 losses in its last five matches.

Patrick Vieira, appointed head coach on August 18, 2026, inherits the group that played in the 2026 World Cup. This 26-man squad is marked by a pronounced blend of experience and youth. Four players were 20 or younger at the World Cup, an unusually high number for a final tournament.

Despite this youth, the core remains experienced with three centurions: Idrissa Gueye, Sadio Mané, and Kalidou Koulibaly. The majority of players are based in England (9) and France (7), and three of them moved for a combined £177 million this summer. The full squad list is available on our squad page.

The Senegal national team finds itself in a delicate position after the World Cup. It sits third in its group with 3 points, 6 points behind leaders France. Its last result was a 3-2 defeat to Belgium on July 1, 2026.

In attack and defense, the record stands at 8 goals scored and 6 conceded after three matches. Patrick Vieira's task will be to turn things around ahead of the 2027 AFCON qualifiers, while Senegal continues its appeal to CAS to reclaim the African trophy won on the pitch in 2025. The upcoming match schedule can be found on our fixtures page.

Vieira's first official challenge will be preparing for the 2027 AFCON qualifiers, for which he has not yet announced his first squad list.