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Senegal bid farewell to the World Cup in dramatic fashion
Senegalese football is witnessing an open battle for the national team coach position after reaching the last 16 of the 2026 World Cup after the Lions of Teranga lost to Belgium (2-3).
reports a newspaper The team Patrick Vieira and Herve Renard are in the running to replace coach Pape Thiau, whose departure is all but confirmed but a final decision is still pending amid internal crises and political strife at the highest levels of Senegal’s government, the French daily reported on Saturday.
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Patrick Vieira, who was born in Dakar, is the most obvious candidate for the position. The coach, who has not been linked to any club since leaving Italian side Genoa in November 2025, is widely supported by the Senegalese Football Association due to his Senegalese origins and his previous investment in the Diambars academy, one of the country’s most prominent player training academies.
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The sources also noted that negotiations with him have reached an advanced stage and that he has given preliminary approval to take over the mission.
Renard is one of the most obvious candidates
Herve Renard, on the other hand, remains one of the most obvious candidates given his outstanding record in African football, after he led Zambia to the 2012 Cup of Nations title and then repeated the feat with Ivory Coast in 2015, becoming the only manager to win the tournament with two different teams.
Although his last World Cup stint with Tunisia was brief, his name is still on the shortlist to coach Senegal.
The report notes that the appointment of a new coach has become part of political tensions within the country, given the ongoing tension between President Baseroud Diomaye Faye and former Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko within the ruling Pasteif party, which has been reflected in the decisions of the Senegalese Football Federation.
No official decision has yet been announced as the federation waits to complete procedures related to the termination of Pope Tiau’s contract, in addition to the approval of the Ministry of Sports, before naming a new coach to lead the national team in the next phase, preparing for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations and 2030 World Cup qualifiers.
