After tens of thousands of football fans crowded the streets of Dakar for a celebratory homecoming parade, Senegal’s president on Tuesday congratulated the Lions of Teranga for their “historic” victory in the Africa Cup of Nations final against Morocco.
As they made their way across the capital and past countless crowds of fans before dusk, the players and coaches finally arrived at the presidential palace brandishing their trophy from an open-top bus for more than seven hours.
President Bassirou Diomaye Faye addressed the players at a ceremony on the grounds, stating that their performance “demonstrated exceptional fighting spirit, extraordinary resilience, and an iron will, and that is what makes your victory historic.”
As the musicians arrived for the reception, a fever pitch of almost audible noise, including revving engines, horns, vuvuzelas, and shouting, dominated Downtown.
The streets were filled with electric energy, whistling, waving flags, dancing, and blowing vuvuzelas all day long by especially young fans.
While a large crowd lined the sidewalks, some walked or even ran alongside the bus, others waited in the shadow of structures and bridges, or even climbed on top of cars and billboards to get a view.
In a tense final on Sunday in Rabat, where Senegal defeated Morocco 1-0, the eventual champions were forced to leave the field late in the match.
The team made their way back to Senegal on a special flight just before midnight on Monday, where President Faye, Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, and other government officials welcomed them.
Fan Doudou Thiam said he “wouldn’t have missed this moment for the world” from the sidelines of the parade in the Bourguiba neighborhood.
The 26-year-old, who was wearing a Senegal jersey, said, “The Lions are our pride and they deserve all the honors.”
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Din of victory
Fans flooded the streets after Senegal’s victory, filling the air with fireworks, honking, and the audible roar of vuvuzelas.
After defeating Egypt in Cameroon in 2022, Senegal won the second title. In just the previous four competitions, the team won the team’s third final.
In the working-class neighborhood of Patte d’Oie, where the procession started, Hortense Kenny brought her five-year-old child.
She told AFP, “The Lions made an entire nation proud by beating the host country in those circumstances,” referring to the match’s conclusion.
“To win the World Cup is all that’s left now.” Anything is possible with Sadio Mane, she said, referring to the team’s biggest star.
He was widely praised for his efforts to persuade his teammates to return in the final, which he did as a peacemaker.
In his speech, Faye praised Mane, calling him a “player who left his mark on this final and this competition through his talent but first and foremost through his sense of responsibility.”
Additionally, the president gave each player a parcel of land along Senegal’s sought-after Petite Côte as well as 75 million CFA francs ($134, 000).
Win in a contested debate
The controversy surrounding their team’s decision to leave the field late in the day in protest of a penalty handed to Morocco left Tuesday’s crowd unconcerned.
After Mane’s prompting, they returned to the pitch, and Senegal’s goalkeeper was swift to save a brahim Diaz penalty before Pape Gueye scored a superb shot in extra time that stunned the Moroccan crowd.
The Moroccan FA reported the incidents to FIFA and the Confederation of African Football, including the protests against Senegal players and supporters.
In his speech, Faye thanked Morocco for its “immenseous efforts” in organizing the competition and thanked its team for their “remarkable performance.”
Far from Morocco, football’s lucrative business sector had flooded into Dakar on Tuesday night.
The 36-year-old street vendor Amath Ndiaye, who typically sells tissues, told AFP that he has switched to selling jerseys, flags, vuvuzelas, and whistles throughout the duration of AFCON and its celebratory ceremonies.
He was basking in the wisdom of his choice on Tuesday.
He told AFP from Patte d’Oie, where he was amidst a cheery crowd clad in patriotic Senegalese clothing and waving flags, “I’m doing well.”
Source: Channels TV
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