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Achraf Hakimi’s appearance at the CAF Awards alongside his family, including his mother, fueled hopes among fans that he would be announced as the winner of the African Ballon d’Or.
However, when Ademola Lookman was revealed as the winner, the news sparked a debate not only on social media but also during the ceremony in Marrakech.
As Lookman made his way to the stage to collect his trophy, the crowd reacted with loud chants of Hakimi’s name, expressing their belief that the Moroccan star deserved the award.
This suggestion by fans of the Moroccan right-back was echoed by football observers and commentators, many of whom also felt Hakimi’s achievements were more deserving of recognition.
Inconsistency in decision process
“Regarding Hakimi’s performance and his continued brilliance, he deserves the award,” sports analyst Mohamed El Hajoui told Morocco World News (MWN), noting that CAF gave a value to the Europa League and the AFCON based on which Lookman won this year’s award.
“If we compare this to last year, even Bounou had an award for the same European competition and made a bigger impact at the national level contributing to the first ever African team reaching the World Cup semi finals,” El Hajoui added.
The analyst told MWN that while awarding Lookman with the African Ballon d’Or might be seen as logical, this raises many questions about the logic and criteria CAF is using, especially “if we consider the criteria and compare it to last year.”
Lookman enjoyed an impressive second season under Gian Piero Gasperini at Atalanta, contributing 27 goals to the Italian club, including 17 goals and 10 assists in 45 matches across all competitions.
Three of the goals were during the Europa League final, where he scored his first career hat trick, leading Atalanta to a 3-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen and securing their first European title.
Meanwhile, Hakimi has played 13 games with PSG in Ligue 1, the top-tier French football league, scoring two goals and providing four assists.
The Atlas Lions star right-back has also featured in six UEFA Champions League games this season, scoring one goal and providing two assists.
In addition , Hakimi has played and impressed in 82 games with Morocco since his debut with the national team in 2016. He has scored 10 goals and provided 12 assists.
For the player’s fans, even if Lookman did have a stellar season last year, Hakimi’s all-around quality (he’s widely considered to be in the top 3 of the best right-backs in world football) and his consistency over the years should have given him the edge over the Nigerian forward.
With Moroccan football players having faced repeated omissions in CAF Awards history, this year’s award has understandably sparked significant debate and outrage among Moroccan fans. For some, this continued dismissal of brilliant seasons by Moroccan players is nothing short of a deliberate bias against Moroccan football.
Bounou gate
A similar controversy resurfaced earlier this year when CAF announced its nominees, notably omitting Yassine Bounou and Ibrahim Diaz despite their impressive performances with both the national team and their respective clubs.
Bounou, who has claimed several individual awards and played a key role in Sevilla’s triumphs as well as his standout contributions to Morocco’s historic World Cup run, has strangely never won the CAF Goalkeeper of the Year award.
In trying to make sense of such bizarre commissions in CAF’s decision process for individual awards, many fans have pointed fingers at CAF President Patrice Motsepe. They have notably accused him of showing favoritism toward South African players, who critics argue have less remarkable achievements compared to those who shone on the world stage during the World Cup.
“Does a player from sub-Saharan Africa just need to win a European title or a league title, like Osimhen last season to win the Ballon d’Or?” El Hajoui asked, questioning whether the Moroccan player needs to achieve “something greater than a World Cup final to win?”
“The European title was won last year,” he said, recalling the players like Ayoub Kaabi and Soufiane Rahimi and Diaz, who also played with their respective teams but were omitted.
These Atlas Lions received support from both fans and their teammates, including Yassine Bounou.
The goalkeeper reacted to CAF Awards’ decision by posting the pictures of Hakimi, Diaz, Rahimi, and El Kaabi, signaling their outstanding performances which place them at the top of the list of players that deserve to clinch trophies.
