Lessons from CAN 2025 by Alioune Abitalib DIOP
The 2026 sports calendar could usher in a time for Senegal to ease political and social tensions.
A time conducive to dialogue and reconciliation, for a peaceful business climate, favorable to the pursuit of our development and the strengthening of our economic sovereignty.
An African Cup of Nations (CAN) won with authority, at the end of a hard-fought match against a great Moroccan team, and which also opens up profound reflections on the functioning and governance of international sports organizations, in particular the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA).
The central question of these reflections must concern the fairness of arbitration and the fair treatment of all the nations which make up these organizations.
Refereeing has, for several decades, been the Achilles heel of CAF, despite the many advances noted in the field of infrastructure.
The various CANs which have succeeded one another reflect the real significant progress noted in the construction of sports, hotel and mobility infrastructures. Moreover, going from a CAN every 2 years to a CAN every 4 years would negatively impact one of the levers of sustainable transformation of our countries and would thus undermine Africa’s influence in the field of football.
As for FIFA which decides, according to its assessment of geopolitical issues, although outside its field of competence, to exclude certain nations from competitions, to honor heads of state, warlords and sowers of chaos, to establish dubious proximity with certain federations, it is losing credibility with international public opinion.
FIFA is neither the African Union nor the European Union, much less the United Nations Security Council, to interfere so much in global political governance. It must remain an international sporting body, responsible for promoting the ethics of the game, fair play, mutual respect and bringing people together through football.
Relations between the president of FIFA and certain world leaders suggest a new plan to rebalance international relations under the cover of the Abraham Accords and the new Board of Peace. To ponder….
Football can, if necessary, separate us on the pitch, but it must never alter the shared passion or the brotherhood between people.
For Senegal, the World Cup in June 2026, co-organized by the USA, Canada and Mexico, will be a fantastic showcase, through sports diplomacy, for the expression of our culture, our values and our identity.
Senegalese diplomacy supported by the sacrosanct principle of respect for peoples, state sovereignty and international cooperation.
The time of open unison with our second star will extend with Lent and Ramadan in the next three (3) months, thus covering a half-year period of ecstasy.
A success against the Blues and a victorious run at the 2026 World Cup would extend the time of unison for almost a year and would further put Senegal on the international stage.
Better yet, the Youth Olympic Games (YOG 2026), which will take place in Senegal from October 30 to November 13, 2026, organized for the first time in Africa, will constitute the final stage of this time of unison. Africa welcomes, Dakar celebrates.
No detail should be left aside to allow our Lions to be in excellent conditions for expressing their talents, both individual and collective.
The President of the Republic recalled this during the Council of Ministers of January 21, 2025: “by asking to maintain the dynamic of performances, to improve the conditions of supervision, preparation and participation of national teams in international competitions and….., finally, the deployment of the Lions preparation plan for the 2026 World Cup. …”
This will consist, among other things, of preparing the pleading of our defense at FIFA level following the CAN 2025 final.
The Senegal team, potential surprise of the 2026 World Cup, could be deprived, if we are not careful, of part of its workforce and its management.
The time of unison is favorable to silencing political quarrels on all sides; it constitutes a fantastic opportunity to bring us together around the essential, what makes us tick, our country, Senegal.
During this time of unison, social tensions will pause and economic tensions will shift, or even disappear.
The induced effects of the time of unison could have, internally, the effect of ping-pong diplomacy, thus opening up a rapprochement of all the components of the political class.
Long live the Lions.
Long live Senegal.
Long live Africa.
Alioune Abitalib DIOP
@: [email protected]
