CAF snubs Victor Osimhen as POTY nominees are revealed

Super Eagles star Victor Osimhen has been omitted from CAF’s ten-man nominees for this year’s men’s player of the year. 

Osimhen, who won this award in 2023, was missing from the list, despite leading Galatasaray to a second successive league title in the Turkish top flight. 

The Super Eagles star has also scored 16 league goals so far for the Lions in 2026, but it was not enough to earn him a spot on the list. 

Osimhen’s omission from the list means no Nigerian player is nominated for this year’s CAF men’s and women’s player of the year awards. 

Senegalese and Moroccan players dominate the list that includes former Liverpool star Sadio Mané and Real Madrid forward Brahim Díaz. 

Paris Saint-Germain’s Achraf Hakimi, who won the award last year, is also nominated alongside his teammate Ismael Saibari

Ismaila Sarr and Pape Gueye are also on the list, along with Yoanne Wissa, Ahmad Diallo, Antoine Semenyo, and Teboho Mokoena. 

Hakimi is the favourite to win the award again after another brilliant year, which saw him win the Africa Cup of Nations with Morocco and the UEFA Champions League with PSG. 

The former Borussia Dortmund star was also the captain of the Morocco team that reached the quarter-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where they lost to France. 

This year’s CAF award ceremony will take place on December 16 in Lagos, Nigeria.