Victor Osimhen has been omitted from the list of nominees for the 2026 CAF Men’s Player of the Year award, despite a standout 2025/26 campaign for club and country.
The 10-man shortlist for the prestigious individual accolade was announced on Wednesday via the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) official X account ahead of the awards ceremony scheduled to take place in Lagos on December 7.
Osimhen, who won the award in 2023, enjoyed an impressive campaign with Galatasaray, recording 22 goals and six assists in 33 appearances across all competitions as the Turkish giants secured their fourth consecutive Super Lig title.
The 27-year-old also made his mark in the UEFA Champions League, scoring seven goals and providing one assist in 10 appearances to help Galatasaray reach the round of 16, where they were eventually eliminated by Liverpool.
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On the international stage, the Nigerian striker played a crucial role in the Super Eagles’ 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, scoring a hat-trick against Benin Republic before adding a brace against Gabon in the semi-final of the CAF playoff tournament.
However, Nigeria’s hopes of reaching the global tournament ended in disappointment after Eric Chelle’s side lost to DR Congo on penalties in the playoff final following a 1-1 draw in normal time.
Osimhen subsequently had another remarkable tournament at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), registering four goals and two assists in six matches as Nigeria finished third to claim the bronze medal in Morocco.
Despite his impressive numbers for club and country, the Super Eagles striker has missed out on a place among Africa’s 10 best players shortlisted for the award.
The nominees are Ivory Coast’s Amad Diallo, DR Congo’s Yoane Wissa, Ghana’s Antoine Semenyo, Morocco’s Ismael Saibari, Achraf Hakimi and Brahim Diaz, Senegal’s Ismaila Sarr, Pape Gueye and Sadio Mane, and South Africa’s Teboho Mokoena.
All 10 nominees featured at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where they made notable contributions for their respective national teams.
Diallo emerged as an effective impact substitute, scoring three goals at the tournament, all after coming off the bench, while Wissa netted three of DR Congo’s five goals in the competition.
Semenyo also enjoyed an impressive campaign in the Premier League with Bournemouth and Manchester City before starting all of Ghana’s matches at the World Cup, where the Black Stars were eliminated in the round of 32.
Morocco’s Saibari scored three goals at the tournament, while Diaz registered four assists. Hakimi, meanwhile, recovered from injury to captain the Atlas Lions to the quarter-finals, where they were eliminated by France.
Senegal’s Ismaila Sarr scored four goals at the World Cup, equalling Roger Milla’s record for the most goals scored by an African player in a single edition of the tournament, set in 1990.
His compatriot Pape Gueye, who scored the only goal in Senegal’s 2025 AFCON final clash against Morocco, also registered two goals and one assist in four World Cup appearances.
Sadio Mane, who came 29th in the 2026 Ballon d’Or ranking, captained Senegal to the 2025 AFCON title before featuring in all their matches at the World Cup, providing one assist.
Mokoena is the only African-based player on the shortlist. The Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder scored South Africa’s only goal at the World Cup and started every match at the 2025 AFCON, where the Bafana Bafana were eliminated by Cameroon in the round of 16.
The 29-year-old also played a key role in Sundowns’ 2025/26 CAF Champions League triumph, scoring the decisive goal as the South African side defeated Morocco’s FAR Rabat 2-1 on aggregate to lift the trophy for the first time since 2016.
The 2026 CAF Awards ceremony will take place on December 7 in Lagos at the newly transformed Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and Creative Arts, popularly known as the National Theatre.
The event marks Nigeria’s return as host of the prestigious African football awards for the first time in almost a decade.
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