They managed to upset defending world champions France, finish second in their group, and beat Sweden in extra time in the round of 16, before losing to Turkey in the quarter-finals.

Along with Norway, Senegal is one of very few national football teams never to have lost against Brazil, having one win and one draw in friendly matches.

[3] Senegal gained its independence from France on 4 April 1960, and the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) was founded that year.

After defeating defending world champions France in their opening game, they drew with Denmark and Uruguay to progress from the group stage, then beat Sweden in extra time in the round of 16 to reach the quarter-finals, one of only four African teams to do so (alongside Cameroon in 1990, Ghana in 2010 and Morocco in 2022).

The West African nation narrowly missed the 2014 FIFA World Cup after losing in a round-robin match against Ivory Coast in the final qualification round.

[9] Senegal defeated Poland 2–1 in their opening group match,[10] thanks to an own goal by Thiago Cionek and a M'Baye Niang strike.

[11] In the next group stage match, Senegal drew 2–2 against Japan, with goals from Sadio Mané and Moussa Wagué.

[12] A 1–0 loss to Colombia in their final match[13] meant they finished level on points with Japan, who progressed thanks to a superior fair play record.

[17][18] Deprived of many players due to COVID-19, Senegal participated in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, postponed to 2022 because of the pandemic; they beat Zimbabwe in their first match 1–0 and drew their next two games, enough to finish first in their group.

The Lions opened the scoring half an hour into the game, by Famara Diédhiou on a pass from Mané; Senegal eventually won 3–1.

[24] Senegal faced Egypt twice after the AFCON final, eliminating the Egyptians on penalties after being tied 1–1 on aggregate, to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Star man Mané missed out due to injury, but Senegal managed to progress from the group nonetheless.

Senegal remained under the shadow of West African giants Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Ghana for the majority of the 20th century.

Following a successful FIFA World Cup debut in 2002, in which the side reached the quarter-finals, Senegal established itself as a new powerhouse in Africa.