Senegal's Trophy Parade Lights Up Dakar: AFCON Triumph Returns Home
20 January 2026
Parade Triumph Through Dakar
Thousands of fans celebrated with the Senegal national team and coaching staff today, Tuesday, after clinching the Africa Cup of Nations title at the expense of Morocco. The victory sent waves of joy through the streets of Dakar as the Lions rode an open-top bus in the national colors.
According to the Senegalese News Agency, the celebratory procession wandered through the city in a joyous display, recalling the team’s iconic runs in 2002 and 2022 while the crowd cheered with infectious energy.
The champions arrived in Bat Doui, a district of Dakar, where a cheering crowd welcomed them and joined the motorcade as it rolled through the capital.
On an open-top bus painted in the national colors, Sadio Mane and his teammates used pauses in the procession to present the trophy to fans, most of them young people who filled the streets and squares of the city.
Road to the Presidential Palace
From Bat Doui, the parade moved toward the Presidential Palace, with the Lions encircled by supporters as the trophy made its rounds.
The open-topped vehicle carried Mane and his teammates as they waved to crowds that dominated Dakar’s squares and alleys.
Punchline time: If trophies could talk, this one would request a bigger travel allowance because it just toured half of Dakar in one afternoon. And second punchline: Morocco’s defense may need GPS—today the trophy found every shortcut to the fans.
