Senegal's Lions travel to Canada for decisive World Cup 2026 qualifier against Iraq
via SeneNews1 min read
The Senegalese national football team, known as the Lions, has departed from their New Brunswick, United States, training camp and is en route to Canada. They are preparing for their third and final group stage match in the World Cup 2026 qualifiers. This move is a crucial step for the team as they aim to secure qualification for the final stages of the competition. The Lions will face Iraq this Friday in a pivotal match. The team is now focused on this Canadian challenge, where every detail will be important to secure their spot in the next round.
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This summary was AI-generated from a story originally published by SeneNews.
Lansana Gagny Sakho has analyzed the difficulties faced by the Lions of Teranga during the 2026 World Cup, connecting their organizational issues to broader public governance challenges in Senegal. He highlights problems with bonuses, contracts, and logistical organization as symptoms of deeper structural weaknesses. Sakho references a recent mapping of African sovereign ratings, noting Senegal's "CCC+" category, which he associates with high risk and institutional fragilities across various sectors. He contrasts this with Cape Verde, which he presents as a model of governance built on discipline, planning, and accountability. Sakho argues that a country's performance in areas like sports, administration, and public finance is directly related to the quality of its governance and the effectiveness of its management mechanisms. He advocates for learning from successful models to improve governance as a key lever for strengthening Senegal's performance in multiple domains, including sports.
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