His Royal Highness Prince Moulay Rachid chaired the 35th Africa Cup of Nations final on Sunday at the "Prince Moulay Abdellah" Stadium in Rabat, claimed by Senegal, following their victory against Morocco (1-0 AET).
Upon his arrival at the stadium, HRH Prince Moulay Rachid reviewed a section of the Auxiliary Forces who paid the honors, before being greeted by the minister of National Education, Preschool and Sports, Mohamed Saâd Berrada, the President of the Moroccan National Olympic Committee, Fayçal Laraichi, FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, CAF President Patrice Motsepe, as well as the President of the Royal Federation of Moroccan Football, Fouzi Lekjaa.
His Royal Highness Prince Moulay Rachid was also greeted by the wali of the Rabat-Salé-Kenitra region, governor of the Rabat prefecture, Mohamed Yacoubi, the president of the Regional Council, Rachid El Abdi, the president of the Communal Council of Rabat, Fatiha El Moudni, the president of the Prefectural Council of Rabat, Abdelaziz Driouich, the president of the District Council of Yacoub El Mansour, Abdelfattah El Aouni, FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström, and FRMF members.
His Royal Highness then joined the Royal Box to attend the AFCON closing ceremony, organized by the Kingdom from December 21, 2025 through January 18, 2026.
Marked by artistic shows reflecting Africa's cultural wealth and the vibrant energy of its youth, and embodying the spirit of cooperation, unity, and competitivity carried by this tournament, this ceremony honors a competition that brought together an entire continent and conquered the whole world.
The voice of Idris Elba — an internationally renowned artist of African origin — enchanted the ceremony on behalf of a whole continent, paying tribute to Africa in Morocco and uttering a message of hope and brotherhood for the future of African football.
Following a brief pause at the Royal Lounge, HRH Prince Moulay Rachid rejoined the Royal Box to attend the proceedings of the final, which has started with the performance of Senegalese and Moroccan national anthems.
At the close of the match, HRH Prince Moulay Rachid joined the podium to hand over trophies and medals.
After the CAF flag was handed over between the President of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, the President of CAF, and the three representatives of the countries co-hosting the next Africa Cup of Nations (Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania), the awards were presented: the Fair Play team award went to Morocco, the Best Goalkeeper to Yassine Bounou, the Top Scorer to Brahim Diaz, and the Best Player to Senegal’s Sadio Mané.
On this occasion, medals were also presented to the referees of the final, to the Moroccan finalist team, and to the Senegalese team, winners of this edition of the AFCON.
His Royal Highness Prince Moulay Rachid then presented the Africa Cup of Nations trophy to the captain of the Senegalese team, in the presence of the Presidents of FIFA and CAF.
(MAP: 18 January 2026)
