By Ghazali Ibrahim
Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi was crowned the 2025 African Footballer of the Year by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Wednesday in Rabat, finishing ahead of Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen and Egypt’s Mohamed Salah.
Hakimi, who plays as a right‑back for Paris Saint‑Germain (PSG), became the first defender to win the award since 1973 and the first Moroccan recipient since Mustapha Hadji in 1998.
He secured the accolade after a stellar season in which he helped PSG win the UEFA Champions League, Ligue 1, the Coupe de France and the UEFA Super Cup.
In his acceptance speech, Hakimi dedicated the trophy to aspiring footballers across Africa, saying it was “for all the strong men and women who dream of being footballers in Africa.”
For Osimhen, who claimed the title in 2023, this marks another close miss. Still, his inclusion among the top three alongside Salah and Hakimi underscores his elite status in African football and his impact for his club and country.
With Hakimi’s victory, the focus now turns to whether Markus‑led PSG and Morocco can maintain their dominance and how Osimhen and others might respond as the race for Africa’s top individual award continues to intensify.
