Senegal
FIFA #18
Reigning Africa Cup of Nations champions with pace, power, and a fanbase that turns every stadium into a party. The only African team to reach a World Cup quarter-final on foreign soil.
๐ In the US
Based in the Atlanta area, which has become one of the most significant West African diaspora hubs in the US. The Senegalese community here is tight-knit and vocal, and the Lions will draw pan-African support from across the Southeast who haven't missed a tournament match in years.
Style
Physical and dynamic, using raw athleticism and pace up front to put pressure on defenses and create chaos in transition.
Rivals
Their greatest enemy is expectation. As Africa's most decorated current side, every tournament brings the weight of an entire continent's hopes โ and that's a harder opponent than any rival.
Home Base
Football in Senegal is played everywhere โ in Dakar's streets, on makeshift pitches along the Atlantic coast, on red earth fields in the interior. The country's wrestling tradition shaped an athletic culture that finds natural expression in football. The 2021 AFCON triumph was a national holiday.
Human Rights
Freedom House
Political rights and civil liberties score (higher = more free)
Reporters Without Borders
Press Freedom Index ranking (lower = more free, out of 180 countries)
UN Human Development Index
Human Development Index score (higher = more developed, 0โ1 scale)
Transparency International
Perceived public sector corruption โ higher is cleaner
ILGA World
Legal status of same-sex relationships