Pape Thiaw

Pape Bouna Thiaw (born 5 February 1981) is a Senegalese football manager and a former player who played as a forward. He most recently served as the head coach of the Senegal national football team.

Playing career He played for several clubs in France, Switzerland and Spain, as well as Dynamo Moscow in Russia on a six-month loan from Strasbourg.

He played for Senegal national football team and was a participant at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He scored 5 goals for his country.

In 2008, while playing for US Créteil in France, Thiaw was reported to have been placed under a mandat de dépôt (detention warrant) in connection with a domestic violence case. French media reported that he was tried in absentia and accused of breaking his wife’s nose, facing a potential one year prison sentence. He did not appear at the hearing, resulting in an arrest warrant and a firm one year sentence.

Coaching career Thiaw was the manager of the Senegal A' national team that won the 2022 African Nations Championship. African Nations Championship limits the squads to players from the domestic league. The main Senegal squad that participates in the FIFA World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations and includes players from the foreign clubs was managed by Aliou Cissé. Thiaw was appointed coach of the Senegal national football team on 13 December 2024, following the latter dismissal two month before.

In October 2025, he led Senegal to qualify to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In January 2026, Thiaw coached Senegal to at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. During the AFCON final, he urged his players to leave the field in protest after the referee awarded Morocco a penalty in stoppage time, which prompted disciplinary proceedings against him after the match. This led to him being banned for five games and fined $100,000 for "unsporting conduct" and "bringing the game into disrepute" by the Confederation of African Football. He led Senegal to reach the knockout stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup before they were eliminated by Belgium in a 3–2 defeat after extra time. He was subsequently dismissed along with his coaching staff following the tournament. He was replaced by Patrick Vieira in August 2026.

Career statistics International

Scores and results list Senegal's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Thiaw goal.

Managerial statistics