Senegal are fast making a habit of qualifying for the FIFA World Cup™, having completed their very own hat-trick by securing a spot at the 2026 showpiece.
The West Africans will be brimming with ambition going into the FIFA World Cup 26™ and will seek to mark this historic occasion – the first 48-team World Cup – by emulating the trailblazers who famously reached the last eight on the nation’s debut at the tournament in 2002. Read on to find out more about the Lions of Teranga’s exploits on the global stage.
Senegal coach: Pape Thiaw
Few people can be better placed to help Senegal summon the spirit of their Korea/2002 quarter-finalists than Thiaw, who played his part in that legendary run and famously set up Henri Camara’s crucial second goal in the last-16 victory over Sweden. The centre-forward was also a member of the squad that advanced all the way to the final at the CAF Africa Cup of Nations that year, which provided a perfect springboard for the subsequent World Cup heroics.
The Dakar native retired from in 2009 and entered the Lions of Teranga dugout a couple of decades later. In addition to coaching the second-string side who compete in the CAF African Nations Championship (which is only open to domestic-based players), he served as assistant to former team-mate Aliou Cisse with the A-team. Following his departure, he moved into the main hotseat, initially as a caretaker before his appointment was made permanent in December 2024.
Thiaw slotted seamlessly into the role, picking up where Cisse had left off by extending the team’s remarkable unbeaten streak, sealing qualification for the World Cup and overseeing marquee results such as the 3-1 win over England in a June 2025 friendly.
Senegal’s World Cup 2026 fixtures and group
Full World Cup 2026 match schedule
How Senegal qualified for World Cup 2026
The Lions of Teranga finished as the pride of the pack by mauling Mauritania 4-0 on the final matchday of group action in the CAF preliminaries, with the irrepressible Sadio Mane leading the charge and bagging a brace. This ensured that Thiaw’s troops pipped Congo DR to top spot following a rip-roaring battle for supremacy in Group B, in which a 3-2 win away to the Leopards the previous month proved decisive. Senegal concluded the campaign undefeated after impressing at both ends of the pitch, having racked up 22 goals going forward and conceded a mere three. Mane was once again their main man in attack, with five goals, followed by the two Sarrs: Pape Matar with four and Ismaila with three.
Senegal’s World Cup history
Senegal’s first World Cup
The Lions of Teranga sprang an almighty upset in their maiden outing at the global extravaganza by defeating then-reigning world and European champions France 1-0 thanks to a close-range finish from Papa Bouba Diop.
After that monumental triumph, the West Africans trailed Denmark following Jon Dahl Tomasson’s 16th-minute penalty but bounced back to claim a 1-1 draw. In their final Group A fixture, they took a 3-0 lead against Uruguay courtesy of a Khalilou Fadiga spot-kick and a Diop double before clinging on to clinch a point – and, with it, a ticket to the knockouts – in the face of a Uruguay onslaught spearheaded by Alvaro Recoba and Diego Forlan.
In the Round of 16, a pair of Henri Camara efforts – the second in extra time – put Sweden to the sword. While the golden-goal rule had worked in their favour against the Swedes, it came back to haunt Bruno Metsu’s men against Türkiye in the quarter-finals. Ilhan Mansiz’s solitary strike in the 94th minute ended Senegal’s fairy-tale run, which remained a record for the furthest that an African team had progressed at the World Cup until Morocco made it to the semi-finals last time round.
Senegal’s last World Cup
The Lions of Teranga went into the most recent global showpiece buoyed by their first-ever Africa Cup of Nations title, secured in February 2022. That optimism continued for 83 minutes of their opener, in which they went toe-to-toe with the Netherlands, before they succumbed to a pair of late goals. Cisse’s side swiftly put that setback behind them to get back on track by beating the hosts 3-1 through goals from Boulaye Dia, Famara Diedhiou and Bamba Dieng.
That set up a winner-takes-all showdown against Ecuador for a place in the Round of 16. After Ismaila Sarr had broken the deadlock from the penalty spot and Moises Caicedo had levelled the scores, up stepped captain Kalidou Koulibaly to volley home – much to the delight of the Senegalese faithful, whose energetic support contributed so much to the spectacle throughout the tournament. Their joy was somewhat dampened, however, when their side fell 3-0 to a ruthless and dominant England team in the last 16.
Senegal’s memorable World Cup moment
While the Lions of Teranga’s 2022 feats set their supporters’ pulses racing, they pale in comparison to the campaign two decades earlier – in terms of both the buzz generated and the magnitude of the achievement.
All of Senegal had been gripped by the team’s march to a first-ever continental final in early 2002, with the 3-2 loss to Cameroon on penalties in the decider doing little to curb the enthusiasm. However, it was the whole planet that was watching just a few months later, on 31 May, when the Senegalese took on global heavyweights France in the World Cup curtain-raiser in Seoul.
Though Les Bleus were heavily fancied to retain their crown, the West Africans were determined to make their mark and emboldened by their inside knowledge of French football, with 21 of the 23 Senegal squad members plying their trade in France at the time and their coach hailing from the country too. “Look at the line-up: we were all products of the French system,” said a smiling El Hadji Diouf – who provided the assist for the only goal of the game – when looking back on the encounter in 2022.
Ahead of the tie, on the other hand, coach Metsu had issued a rallying cry and tipped his charges to get one over his homeland, telling his players: “After tonight’s match, people will be talking about us all over the world. Get out there and show me what you can do.”
The pivotal moment of the match came on the half-hour mark, when Diouf burst past Frank Lebœuf and aimed a cut-back towards Diop. The midfielder was initially denied by Emmanuel Petit’s outstretched leg but bundled into the empty net with his second bite at the cherryfter the ball had ricocheted to him off goalkeeper Fabien Barthez. The team’s dance celebration – orchestrated by the goalscorer – has gone down in history along with the victory itself.
While their manager had seen it coming, the result sent shock waves across the globe and sparked jubilation back at home. “The whole country was at fever pitch,” Leonard Ndiaye, the former general secretary of the Dakar Football League, told TV5MONDE. “It was as if we’d won the World Cup.”
This landmark triumph’s lasting legacy is epitomised by the establishment of the Senegalese Ministry of Sport the following year, which paved the way for professional football’s emergence in the country. Meanwhile, the date of the game will always hold special significance in Senegal, a fact to which Diouf can certainly attest: “I still get bombarded with messages every 31 May!”
Senegal’s World Cup top scorer
The nation’s 16 goals at FIFA’s flagship event have been spread across no fewer than 12 scorers, while only two players have netted more than once for the country. One in front of Henri Camara lies the late Diop, whose three strikes all also came at Korea/Japan 2002. Besides grabbing the iconic winner against France, the much-mourned anchorman notched a vital brace in the group-stage decider against Uruguay.
After coming through the ranks at the Dakar club Jaraaf, Diop starred for the likes of Grasshoppers in Switzerland before making the move to Lens a few months ahead of his heyday at the global showpiece. He lined up for the French outfit for two and a half seasons, helping them to a runners-up finish in Ligue 1 in his maiden campaign. Next up, he headed across the Channel to England, where he spent the rest of his career – barring a year at AEK Athens – and represented Fulham, Portsmouth, West Ham and Birmingham.
Having hung up his boots in 2013, the beloved ex-midfielder, a towering figure in every sense and the pride of his nation, tragically passed away at the age of 42 in 2020.
Senegal’s record World Cup appearance makers
Three players share the crown as Senegal’s World Cup appearance kings: Kalidou Koulibaly, Youssouf Sabaly and Ismaila Sarr have all laced up their boots for the Lions of Teranga at the competition on seven occasions. The trio all started every game throughout the 2018 and 2022 campaigns, while Koulibaly and Sarr have another badge of honour in common: their goals against Ecuador propelled the West Africans through to the Round of 16 last time out. Koulibaly, who skippered the side in Qatar, is the only one of the three to have played every minute of those seven matches.
