The Senegal national U-20 football team (French: ÃÂquipe du Sénégal de football U-20), nicknamed Les Lions de la Teranga (young Lions of Teranga) is the feeder team for the Senegal national football team and is controlled by the Senegalese Football Federation. They are the current champions of the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations and their senior team are the current champions of the AFCON and the CHAN. The first time Senegal qualified for a World Cup was in 2015, where they managed to qualify for the semi-finals up until they lost against Brazil 5âÂÂ0, their biggest defeat. They then went on to loss the third place match against fellow WAFU member Mali. Senegal ended up finishing in fourth place, their best performance in the tournament.
Senegal's first appearance in the Africa Cup of Nations was in 1993, when they drew 0âÂÂ0 against Egypt. They then later lost to Ethiopia and Morocco respectively.
Being the current champion of Africa under-20, Senegal's favoritism to pass the stage was very big after an impressive display in the U-20 AFCON in Egypt, winning all games without conceding a goal as Senegal continued to conquer Africa. However, the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup became a total disaster for the Senegalese, as they started with a shock 0âÂÂ1 defeat to Japan. Senegal also failed to hold the line properly against Israel in a humiliating 1âÂÂ1 draw, where a Senegalese player even scored an own goal. Senegal improved against Colombia in the final match, and led 1âÂÂ0 until the fifth minutes of added time in the second half when a late goal from the Colombian side ensured Senegal to finish bottom and suffer a group stage exit. This was the first-time ever in Senegalese football history, a national team of the country finished bottom of the table, a humiliating exit for the African champions. To make thing worse, Nigeria, Gambia and Tunisia, all three lost to Senegal in the earlier U-20 AFCON, successfully reached the knockout stage, ensuring Senegal's humiliation in the tournament.
<sup>1</sup>Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
The following is a list of match results in the last 24 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
The following players were named in the squad for the 2025 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations, to be played between 27 April â 18 May 2025.
Caps and goals correct as of 2 May 2025, after the match against the Central African Republic.
The following players have also been selected for the Senegal Under-20 squad within the last twelve months and remain eligible for selection.
The following table shows Senegal's head-to-head record in the FIFA U-20 World Cup.