When Senegal won the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on Sunday in a penalty shootout against Egypt, football fanatics lauded their system, federation and player man-management.
Senegal coach, Aliou Cisse, who guided the Lions of Teranga to their first-ever Afcon triumph, has been at the helm of the team for slightly under 7 years.
He was appointed to the role in March 2015 and has since guided the team to the 2018 World Cup and the 2019 Afcon final.
Cisse isn’t the only coach to have managed an African national team for over five years.
Comoros coach Amir Abdou
Abdou joins Cisse in this list. He was appointed in January 2014 and has taken charge of the squad ever since.
His biggest achievement was qualifying for the just-ended 2021 Africa Cup of Nations for the first time ever. Abdou led Comoros in a draw against Kenya at Kasarani Stadium and a win three days later, in Comoros, one that guaranteed the island nation a place in Afcon.
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Eritrean coach Alemseged Efrem
Efrem also features in the list, having been in charge of the team since January 2015.
The team has not yet had a breakthrough in continental competitions but has actively taken part in the CECAFA Senior Championships, their most outstanding result being a 4-1 win over Kenya’s Harambee Stars in 2019.
Mauritania’s Corentin Martins
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Martins has been in charge of the team since October 2014.
Martins’ most outstanding achievement was leading the team to the 2019 and 2021 Afcon editions. He was, however, relieved of his duties in 2021 following a poor spate of results in the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers.
Guinea Bissau’s Baciro Cande
He coached the team between 2003 and 2010, a run of seven years. He returned to the same capacity in 2016.
Madagascar’s Nicolas Dupuis
Dupuis also served his national team for five years since March 2017. His biggest achievement was qualifying for the 2019 Afcon for the first time ever.
Harambee Stars
Back home, the Kenyan National team, Harambee Stars, has been a sharp contrast to this phenomenon.
In the past five years, the team has witnessed seven coaches: Bobby Williamson (2014–16), Stanley Okumbi (2016–17), Paul Put (2017–2018), Sebastien Migne (2018–2019), Francis Kimanzi (2019–2020), Jacob "Ghost" Mulee (2020–2021), and Engin Fırat (2021).
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