Iliman Ndiaye: “Senegal’s goal is to win the 2026 World Cup”
By OnzeActu · · 2 min read
Iliman Ndiaye, Everton midfielder and Senegalese international, affirms that the ambition of the selection is to win the 2026 World Cup. The BBC, present in Los Angeles and New York for the launch of the tournament, recalls that Senegal faces France in its opening match, and that former executives like El Hadji Diouf have passed on their experience to this generation.
The BBC devotes an episode of its podcast “More Than The Score” to behind the scenes at the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and focuses on Senegal's ambitions. Present in Los Angeles, journalist Isaac Fanin spoke at length with Iliman Ndiaye, Senegal and Everton midfielder, who displays total confidence: “the team is not afraid of anyone” and the objective is clear, “to win the World Cup”.
The BBC correspondents in New York, Lee James and John Bennett, also reflected on the atmosphere of the tournament after the opening contested by Morocco against Brazil and the memory of the CAN final between these two selections. The podcast highlights the new teams, the players to follow and the fan phenomena that will mark this 48-nation World Cup.
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Sportingly, Senegal will begin its campaign against France, a meeting presented as a rehearsal of the significant clash of the 2002 World Cup. According to Ndiaye, the former executives of this victorious generation prepared the younger ones: El Hadji Diouf, one of the heroes of 2002, spoke to them about this victory which remained in the memories of Senegalese football.
“More Than The Score” promises to explore the tournament beyond just statistics: anecdotes, trends and portraits of supporters complete the analysis of the matches. With 48 teams spread across the United States, Mexico and Canada, the BBC World Service offers extensive coverage, from the preliminary round to the final. Find the episode and the series “More Than The Score” on podcast platforms to follow these perspectives on the 2026 World Cup.