Brahim Diaz of Morocco won Golden Boot Top Scorer, Sadio Mane of Senegal won Man of the Competition and Yassine Bounou Bono of Morocco won Goalkeeper of the Tournament during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations AFCON final match between Senegal and Morocco at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, Morocco on 18 January 2026 ©Samuel ShivambuBackpagePix
Monday Jan 19, 2026. 10:24
Following Senegal’s triumph in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations final on Sunday, the recipients of the tournament’s individual awards were revealed.
The Lions of Teranga defeated hosts Morocco 1-0 in extra time at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, courtesy of a superb strike from Pape Gueye in what was a bizarre affair involving crowd clashes, both coaches on the pitch, and Senegal threatening to walk-off.
Morocco’s Brahim Díaz won the Puma Golden Boot as the tournament’s leading scorer with five goals in six games. His tally could have been a perfect six from six games, but the Real Madrid winger’s panenka penalty attempt at the death was denied by Senegal’s Édouard Mendy, sending the final to extra-time.
Reigning CAF Goalkeeper of the Year Yassine Bounou was awarded the tournament’s Golden Glove for the Best Goalkeeper at the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2025. The 34-year-old registered five clean sheets in seven games, equalling the winning goalkeeper Mendy.
Senegal’s Sadio Mané was named Player of the Tournament for a second time, having won the award alongside Senegal’s first title in 2021.
The 33-year-old showed that class is permanent, bagging two goals and three assists in six matches, leading the Lions of Teranga to their second continental title, both in total and in the space of three editions of the tournament.
But Mané showed he was deserving of the award not only in his deeds with the ball at his feet. He showed his sportsmanship and leadership in the final, calling on his players to resume the game after they left the pitch in protest over a penalty awarded to Morocco. He went down the tunnel himself to fetch them, showing a true example of what a leader in the game of football should look like.
By Nic Gleeson