Babacar Khalifa Ndiaye celebrates the coronation of the Lions in a new work April 9, 2026
Through his book “A second star of the most beautiful brilliance”, Babacar Khalifa Ndiaye pays tribute to a historic moment in Senegalese football. Yesterday, during a dedication ceremony full of emotion and recognition, the former journalist from Le Soleil brought together press figures and sports lovers around a strong story, between memories, analysis and national pride.
Babacar Khalifa Ndiaye officially presented his work “A second star of the most beautiful brilliance” yesterday at the Maison de la Presse Babacar Touré, during a dedication ceremony which brought together an audience made up of media professionals, sports players and many enthusiasts. Former director of the “Sports” editorial staff of the daily Le Soleil, the author offers, through this book, an intense dive into the heart of a significant moment in the history of Senegalese football. Faithful to his rigorous and accessible style, Khalifa Ndiaye revisits the journey that led to the conquest of this second star, mixing journalistic stories, testimonies and analyses.
“I had enormous pleasure in writing this book. I am a journalist by training, with a 40-year career. My role is to produce articles. I’m not a writer,” the author confided. Unlike 2022, where the team took it easy, Mr. Ndiaye believes that in Morocco, the conviction to go all the way was very present. “It was from that moment that I began to list the themes. Cheikh Tidiane Fall had the ingenious idea of involving members of the diaspora,” he said. “For the title, after Cameroon, I told myself that I had finished writing books, promising myself to pick up the pen again if Senegal reached the semi-finals or the final of the World Cup. I first explained why Senegal could not win the Can. I had met actors from the immediate entourage of the selection. The second work was written during the Covid-19 period. I brought out all the former internationals, out of a duty of recognition,” he underlined.
“Weird verdict”
For him, the Appeal Jury, with its “bizarre verdict”, gave credibility to the writing of this “book for history”, a collective work. “We experienced exceptional competition, which unfortunately continues in court. But the title remains ours, given the way we acquired it. Apart from the DRC, which stood up to us, no team reached the level of Senegal,” he explained.
According to the one who responds to his initials, Bkn, during the previous work devoted to the national team, it was Cheikh Tidiane Fall who suggested that he write it. “I told him on the condition that he wrote the preface. This time, he advised me to write it at the start of the tournament. He’s my editor-in-chief for life,” he emphasized. It’s a 116 page book for the story. It allows us to understand how Senegal deserved to win its second continental star in Morocco, despite strong multifaceted adversity. In this intellectual production, we find captivating chapters: emotions always vivid; a pleasure of which we never tire; the beautiful ascent towards the second star; the most Moroccan pschitt; Tangier, Senegalese enclave on Moroccan soil; Pape Thiaw, the strategist who entered history through the front door; Sadio Mané, erect a statue to him; the great artisans of the coronation; from the bays to Moroccan jails, the crazy trajectory of 18 Senegalese supporters; the diaspora present like never before; 28 starters, it was not a bluff; Senegalese journalists replay the Can; what secrets behind the perfect Moroccan lawns?, etc. Babacar Khalifa Ndiaye is from the 11th class of Cesti, holds a master’s degree in English, he was head of the department, then director of the “Sports” editorial staff from 1997 to 2017.
To his credit: 18 Can, 7 World Cups, 12 Paris-Dakar Rallies, 1 Olympic Games… His work is prefaced by Cheikh Tidiane Fall, former editor-in-chief of Le Soleil and former communications manager for the Fsf and Sones. “I thank Khalifa Ndiaye for the honor and consideration he gave me by allowing me to preface this book, as was already the case with “Triumph of the Lions in 2022,” declared the preface. “After the attempted sporting coup d’état underway during this Can, in collusion with Morocco, an unexpected situation made it difficult to finalize the work. It was necessary to remove a chapter devoted to the unacceptable fate of the 18 supporters taken hostage. There was also this thunderclap from the Caf Appeal Jury. While the initial printing of the book was already completed, it was necessary to rework the pagination in order to add a new chapter evoking what we consider to be an administrative heist,” added the preface.
In a friendly atmosphere, the speakers praised the quality of the work as well as the relevance of the author’s perspective. In turn, they insisted on the importance of preserving a written record of the country’s great sporting epics, in order to nourish the collective memory and inspire future generations.
Abdoulaye DEMBELÉ
