Senegal enters the 2026 World Cup finals with a rare blend of ambition, experience and renewal, in an attempt to rewrite one of the most beautiful stories in African football on the world stage. Although the ‘Lions of Teranga’ were unable to go beyond the quarter-finals of the 2002 World Cup, the signs leading up to the current edition suggest that the West African side possesses the qualities to make it one of the leading contenders to play the role of ‘dark horse’ in the tournament. Senegal had made their way to the World Cup with remarkable consistency, topping their qualifying…