My first stage is sport explained to children. Here, we answer all their questions, we decipher the rules, we tell the stories of great athletes, we learn everything about sport. In this 5-episode series, we focus on the CAN, on the occasion of the 35th edition which takes place in Morocco from December 21, 2025 to January 18, 2026.
Raphael, a young listener and footballer from Abidjan, asks an essential question before the start of the CAN, that of mental preparation.
The CAN has become a major competition for African footballers. If they are already used to major events, most of the selected players play in European championships, playing for your country increases the pressure a notch.
Sadio Mané, the Senegalese football star, spoke about it in Rio Ferdinand’s podcast: “Before winning the African Cup of Nations, believe me, I sometimes played badly because of this pressure, because of the expectations I had of myself. I remember that during the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, I never slept more than five hours in a row. Never seen before. At that moment, I had a very strong thought: I was at Liverpool Football Club, and the Senegalese expected a lot from me. »
How to prepare mentally?
If mental preparation is less and less taboo, not all coaches necessarily believe in it. There are no miracle recipes but there are several methods.
For example, mental visualization, a technique used by the Egyptian Mohamed Salah. It’s about imagining match situations to better anticipate when the moment comes.
Mohamed Salah is quite fond of mental preparation since he also practices meditation, yoga and chess.
Footballers are also fans of rituals. A way to establish a routine and get in condition for the match.
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