CAF Awards 2024: Morocco’s players Achraf Hakimi, Soufiane Rahimi, Bilal El Khannouss & Eliesse Ben Seghir among Nominees

Marrakesh will host for the second consecutive year the Awards ceremony of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Dec.16. These Awards recognize exceptional performances in both club and national competitions, culminating in the prestigious titles of CAF African Player of the Year in both men’s and women’s categories.

Moroccan football stars Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain) and Soufiane Rahimi (Al Ain/UAE) have been nominated for the best African player award 2024 of the Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF).

Moroccan players Eliesse Ben Seghir (AS Monaco) and Bilal El Khannouss (Leicester City) have also been shortlisted for the trophy of the Young African player of the year. For his part, Moroccan goalkeeper Munir El Kajoui (RS Berkane) is among the ten nominees for the prize in this category.

The list of nominees for the CAF African Player of the Year title includes Amine Gouiri (Algeria/Rennes), Edmond Tapsoba (Burkina Faso/Bayer Leverkusen), Simon Adingra (Cote d’Ivoire/Brighton & Hove Albion), Chancel Mbemba (DR Congo/Olympique de Marseille), Serhou Guirassy (Guinea/Borussia Dortmund), Achraf Hakimi (Morocco / Paris Saint-Germain), Soufiane Rahimi (Morocco/Al Ain), Ademola Lookman (Nigeria / Atalanta), William Troost-Ekong (Nigeria/Al Kholood), Ronwen Williams (South Africa/MamelodiSundowns)
Besides Eliesse Ben Seghir (Morocco/AS Monaco) and Bilal El Khannouss (Morocco/ Leicester City), the other rising stars vying for the Young Player of the Year prize are Carlos Baleba (Cameroon / Brighton & Hove Albion), Karim Konate (Cote d’Ivoire / Salzburg), Oumar Diakite (Cote d’Ivoire / Reims)Yankuba Minteh (Gambia / Brighton & Hove Albion), Abdul Aziz Issah (Ghana/Dreams FC/Barcelona), El Hadji Malick Diouf (Senegal / Slavia Prague), Lamine Camara (Senegal / AS Monaco) and Amanallah Memmiche (Tunisia / Esperance Sportive de Tunis).

The CAF Awards also feature prizes for best African coach, the best African National Team and best African football Club.
Morocco’s national soccer team is nominated for the National Team of the Year award, while RS Berkane is also in the running for the African Club of the Year award.
The winners of each category will be determined through votes from a diverse panel, including the CAF Technical Committee, media professionals, and the Head Coaches & Captains of Member Associations, as well as clubs.

The African confederation noted while announcing the host city of the CAF Awards ceremony that last year’s edition in Marrakech was attended by several celebrities and achieved great success.

Dynamism of Moroccan Efforts in Football Highlighted in CAF General Assembly

The dynamism of Moroccan efforts to promote football was highlighted at CAF’s 46th General Assembly heldearlier this week in Addis Ababa.

President of the International Federation of Association Football Gianni Infantino and CAF President Patrice Motsepe thanked Morocco for its efforts to promote football in Africa. Emphasis was also placed on the competitions to be organized by CAF and FIFA in Morocco in 2025 (Women’s AFCON, 2025 AFCON, and the U17 World Cup) and the CAF Women’s Champions League scheduled next November.

Gianni Infantino expressed special thanks to Morocco for hosting the next five editions of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.

“I would like to thank Morocco for hosting the next five editions of this women’s competition,” said Infantino, who highlighting the development of youth soccer in Africa.

He also stressed the need to invest in youth and create opportunities to further develop soccer on the continent.
FIFA President also congratulated the Kingdom, which will co-host the 2030 World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal.

“The 2030 World Cup will return to African soil in 2030,” he said, highlighting the development of African soccer.

CAF General Assembly approved the moral and financial reports, as well as other decisions relating to linguistic zones and the age limit for running for the CAF presidency and for being a member of the Executive Committee.