In a historic night for Moroccan football, Achraf Hakimi and Ghizlane Chebbak were crowned the 2025 African Footballer of the Year and Women’s Player of the Year, respectively, at the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Awards in Rabat. Hakimi, the 27-year-old Paris Saint-Germain right-back, edged out Egypt’s Mohamed Salah and Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen to claim the prestigious men’s award. This marks the first time a Moroccan has won the title since Mustapha Hadji in 1998. Hakimi’s stellar performances for both PSG and the Moroccan national team, including scoring the opening goal in PSG’s 5-0 Champions League final victory over Inter Milan, solidified his place as a deserving winner. Despite his recent ankle injury, Hakimi remains hopeful of leading Morocco to glory in the upcoming 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on home soil. Meanwhile, Chebbak, the 35-year-old Moroccan captain, made history as the first Moroccan woman to win the women’s award since its inception in 2001. Her leadership and top-scoring performance in the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations were instrumental in Morocco’s journey to the final, although they fell short against Nigeria. The awards ceremony also celebrated other African football luminaries, including Cape Verde’s Bubista, named Men’s Coach of the Year for guiding his team to a historic World Cup qualification, and Nigeria’s Chiamaka Nnadozie, who secured the Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year award for the third consecutive year. The event underscored Morocco’s growing influence in African football and set the stage for the nation’s ambitions in the 2025 AFCON and beyond.