Two Portuguese coaches nominated for best of the year in Africa

Alexandre Santos, now at the service of Petro de Luanda, but who guided FAR Rabat last season, and Miguel Cardoso, coach of the South Africans of Mamelodi Sundowns, are the two Portuguese representatives in the race to distinction, who recognizes the best coach of the year in African football.

Cardoso, who has been in command of the Sundowns since the end of 2024, won the African Champions League last season, in which he played in the finals precisely the FAR Rabat, from Santos, and was also South Africa's runner-up behind the champion Orlando Pirates.

Alexandre Santos, on the other hand, is among the nominees for the positive performance he had at the African Champions, in which he led the Moroccan team to the decision, and, in contrast, ended the Morocco championship in the fourth position.

This time, the technician guided the National in four matches, but recently left for the Angolans of Petro Luanda, returning to an emblem he had already trained between 2021 and 2024.

The list of nominees for the best coach in 2026 also includes Bubista, winner of the award last year and who led Cape Verde's selection to the World Cup2026, in which the ‘blue sharks’ reached the 16 final birds, the Moroccans Walid Regagui and Mohamed Ouahbi, the Senegalese Pape Thiaw and Lamine N’Diaye, the Egyptians Hossam Hassan and Mohammed Gamal, and the Congolese Sébastien Desabre.

The CAF also released the nominees for other categories of annual awards, which distinguish the main protagonists of African football, including players, young talents and selections.

The list of nominees for CAF player of the year Awards 2026 consists of Marfinense Amad Diallo, a colleague of Portuguese internationals Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot in Manchester United, Congolese Yoane Wissa, Ghanaian Antoine Semenyo, Moroccans Ismael Saberi, Achraf Hakimi and Brahim Díaz, Senegalese Ismaïla Sarr, Pape Gueye and Sadio Mané, and South African Teboho Mokoena.

Algeria, Cape Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia compete for the best national selection prize of the year.

The 10 goalkeepers nominated for the best prize of the year are the Algerian Oussama Benbot, Cape Verdean Vozinha, the Moroccan coast Yahia Fofana, Congolese Lionel Mpasi, the Egyptians El Mahdy Soliman and Mostafa Shobeir, Moroccan Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti, Moroccan Yassine Bounou, Senegalese Édouard Mendy and South African Ronwen Williams.

The ceremony of the CAF Awards 2026 is scheduled for December 7 in Lagos, Nigeria, where the winners of the various categories will be announced.