As football enthusiasts eagerly await the CAF player of the year award in Marrakech, Morocco, on Monday, December 16, the continental football body has released the final five nominees.

With so little to choose in the voting between the remaining nominees in the race for the coveted Men’s Player of the Year at the 2024 CAF Awards, organisers have finally released the list of five names ahead of the ceremony.

The 2024 CAF Awards ceremony will take place at the Palais des Congrès and the five outstanding players on the continent will battle it out for who will take the coveted prize and write his name in the rich history of football on the continent.

Here is a list of the players that are still in the running for the Men’s Player of the Year prize.

Ademola Lookman – National Team: Nigeria
Club: Atalanta, Italy

Ademola Lookman’s career took an unprecedented upward trajectory following his switch from England to play for Nigeria where he has become a mainstay of the Super Eagles in just under two years.

In the past season, Lookman has been in the form of his life, helping turn his Italian Serie A side, Atalanta, from perennial mid-table team into title contenders and taking them to a UEFA Europa League trophy win, a first major piece of silverware for the club in 61 years

The 27-year-old scored a hat-trick in the decider as Atalanta became the only team in the 2023-24 campaign to inflict a defeat on German Bundesliga outfit Bayer Leverkusen as the forward provided one of the great final displays in European football history.

Lookman also helped Nigeria to the final of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023, where they lost to the hosts, where his superlative displays and three goals saw him named in the Team of the Tournament.

He has not looked back from there and many will be surprised if he is overlooked as the 2024 African Men’s Player of the Year.

Achraf Hakimi – National Team: (Morocco)
Club: Paris Saint-Germain, France

Hakimi has long been one of the most consistent right-backs in European football and had an excellent year for Paris Saint-Germain, who he helped win a third French Ligue 1 title in a row last season.

PSG did the double with victory in the Coupe de France final over Lyon in May, while Hakimi also helped Morocco to a bronze medal at the Paris Olympic Games.

With his quality and leadership, he remains a key figure for the Morocco national team and played in 14 internationals in 2024, scoring at the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023 against the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Simon Adingra – National Team (Cote D’Ivoire)
Club: Brighton & Hove Albion, England

The Cote D’Ivoire winger was a key figure for Cote d’Ivoire in their roller-coaster run to the 2023 TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations title on home soil in February.

He scored a 90th minute equaliser in an extra-time victory against Mali in the quarter-finals and provided two assists in the final against Nigeria as ‘The Elephants’ put behind them a difficult start to the campaign to lift the trophy and was named Best Young Player at the tournament.

The 22-year-old has also been a key performer for Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League this calendar year, being part of an exciting and talented young squad of players.

Serhou Guirassy – National Team (Guinea)
Club: Borussia Dortmund, Germany

Guirassy scored a remarkable 30 goals in as many games for German Bundesliga side Stuttgart in the 2023-24 season and has carried on that form following a move to Borussia Dortmund for the new campaign.

His tally of 28 Bundesliga goals in the season beat Stuttgart’s previous record of 25, set by Mario Gómez in the 2008-09, with only Bayern Munich forward, Harry Kane, managing more goals than Guirassy in the campaign.

The 28-year-old scored 23 goals for club and country in the period under review (January-October 2024), including a hat-trick for Guinea against Ethiopia in the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 qualifiers, and two more a week later against the same opponents.

Ronwen Williams – National Team (South Africa)
Club: Mamelodi Sundowns, South Africa

Williams’ spectacular penalty saves at the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023 will live long in the memory as he captained South Africa to the bronze medal.

Along the way, the Bafana Bafana defeated the more fancied Morocco in the round of 16, before Williams’ shoot-out heroics saw the side past Cape Verde and DR Congo.

He also helped Bafana Bafana qualify for TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2025 and was a nominee for FIFA’s Yashin Trophy for best goalkeeper in 2024.

The 32-year-old helped his club Mamelodi Sundowns set a joint record low of 11 goals conceded in 30 games in the South African Premiership as ‘The Brazilians’ romped to a record-extending seventh domestic league title in succession.

World football governing body, FIFA, has officially confirmed Morocco as the co-host of the 2030 world cup along with Spain and Portugal, which will make the north African country the second nation in the continent to host the tournament after South Africa in 2010.

The announcement, which was made on Wednesday by FIFA President Gianni Infantino during FIFA’s virtual extraordinary Congress, also awarded the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia.

The Spain, Portugal and Morocco
joint bid code-named “Yalla Vamos,” represents the collaborative effort between the three countries aimed at uniting different continents through sport’s universal language.

President of Morocco’s Football Federation (FRMF), Fouzi Lekjaa who spoke on the development, emphasized the importance of the bid, extending his thanks to FIFA and the football community for contributing to making Morocco’s hosting the event possible.

Lekjaa stressed that the decision is a testament to the three countries’ commitment to growth and development, noting that sports, especially football serve as a powerful leverage for socio-economic progress and the betterment of humanity.

The bid which was presented with a captivating visual presentation, showcasing iconic football players who represent the three countries, including Portugal’s Luis Figo and Morocco’s Nordin Naybet.

The presentation underlined the unique strengths of each host nation, spotlighting their football legacy alongside touristic landmarks, culinary traditions, and cultural heritage.

One of the key infrastructure highlights is the planned 5,000-kilometer railway network that aims to connect Lisbon, Madrid, and Casablanca in just three hours.

The World Cup tournament carries special significance as it marks exactly 100 years since Uruguay hosted the inaugural World Cup in 1930 and in this sense, the 2030 edition will feature a unique format, beginning with three opening matches in South America before moving to the main hosts for the remaining 101 matches scheduled between June 13 and July 21, 2030.

Six Moroccan cities, Rabat, Casablanca, Fez, Tangier, Marrakech, and Agadir, will host matches, requiring significant infrastructure upgrades.

The 2030 World Cup marks a significant achievement for Morocco after five unsuccessful bids spanning three decades.

The tournament will begin with symbolic matches in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay on June 8 and 9, 2030, commemorating the centenary of the first World Cup, before moving to Morocco, Spain, and Portugal for the remainder of the competition.