Hakimi, Semenyo and the African stars of Europe's 2025-26 season

African players were at the heart of the 2025-26 European football season, from a Champions League final in Budapest to the race for the Premier League Golden Boot.

Hakimi: Africa's best, Europe's champion again

Morocco's Achraf Hakimi was named CAF African Player of the Year at the CAF Awards in Rabat in November 2025, ahead of Egypt's Mohamed Salah and Nigeria's Victor Osimhen. He was the first Moroccan to win the award since Mustapha Hadji in 1998, and the first Paris Saint-Germain player to win it.

He then helped PSG retain the Champions League. In the final against Arsenal in Budapest on 30 May 2026, Hakimi started at right-back and scored in the penalty shootout as PSG won 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

Semenyo's breakthrough

In the Premier League, Ghana's Antoine Semenyo had the best season of any African player. He scored 10 league goals for Bournemouth in the first half of the season, moved to Manchester City in January, and finished with 17 goals, third in the scoring charts behind Erling Haaland (27) and Igor Thiago (22).

Cameroon's Bryan Mbeumo scored 11 league goals for Manchester United.

A quieter year for Salah

Egypt's Mohamed Salah won his fourth Premier League Golden Boot in 2024-25, equalling Thierry Henry's record. In 2025-26 he scored seven league goals for Liverpool.

Elsewhere, Nigeria's Victor Osimhen, one of the three finalists for the African award, plays his club football for Galatasaray in Turkey.

From clubs to countries

These players carried their club form into a historic summer for African national teams, when nine African sides reached the World Cup knockout stage. Hakimi's Morocco went furthest, to the quarter-finals.