Image Credits: Imago Images
Sadio Mane has announced his retirement from international football today.
Mane made his senior debut for Senegal in 2012, breaking into the national side while he was still emerging in Europe. The 34-year-old is his nation’s record goal scorer with 54 strikes in 130 appearances.
The former Liverpool man won his first AFCON title back in 2022, beating Mohamed Salah’s Egypt on penalties to win the nation’s first continental trophy.
The second AFCON crown is highly contentious.
Morocco received a controversial stoppage‑time penalty and Senegal’s players walked off for more than ten minutes in protest.
When they eventually returned, Édouard Mendy saved Brahim Diaz’s Panenka before Pape Gueye scored in extra time.
CAF’s appeal board later applied its regulations strictly, ruling that Senegal had “forfeited” the final by leaving the pitch without the referee’s permission, turning the result into a 3–0 win for Morocco on paper.
Morocco were officially awarded the AFCON title, while the Senegalese federation filed a case at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which is why that second trophy has been talked about as contentious or even “stripped”.
In a statement relayed by French outlet Le Quotidien, the Liverpool legend said:
“Know that I sacrificed everything for this flag. I gave the best of myself and I always fought fiercely for our homeland,” he wrote. He also praised the support he has received throughout his career: “Your constant support has been the driving force behind my success.”
He added that he will look to continue to support the Senegal team as part of the backroom staff or governing body:
“Tomorrow, it is with pleasure that I will put my experience at the service of the Nation, whether within a technical staff, on a coaching bench or in the governing.”
Mane will still be active a club-level as things stand, where his contract with Al-Nassr runs until the end of the 2026/27 season.