England suffers first in history soccer defeat to African team

(MENAFN) Senegal’s national football team defeated England 3-1 in an international friendly on Tuesday in Nottingham, marking England’s first-ever loss to an African side. With this win, Senegal extended its unbeaten streak in international football to 22 matches, the longest currently held.

The Independent described England as being “outpassed, outrun and outwitted” by a more skillful and cohesive Senegal team. England’s captain Harry Kane opened the scoring in the 7th minute, marking his fourth consecutive game scoring under new manager Thomas Tuchel—making him the first England player to score in each of a new manager’s first four matches.

Senegal equalized through Ismaila Sarr in the 40th minute, took the lead with a goal from Abib Diarra in the 62nd minute, and sealed the win with Cheikh Tidiane Sabaly’s goal in stoppage time.

This historic win ended England’s unbeaten run against African teams, which had included 15 wins and six draws. It was only the second time England scored first at home but lost by two goals or more, the previous instance being a 1995 loss to Brazil.

Senegal’s six shots on target in the first half were the most any team has managed against England since Brazil recorded eight in 2013.

The loss was Tuchel’s first as England manager following wins against Albania, Latvia, and Andorra. Senegal is preparing for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, while England focuses on the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Tuchel said he hated losing but urged calm, emphasizing the need to learn and improve before the upcoming matches. “The World Cup is not next week. We have two more games in September and then we meet again in the World Cup season,” he said.

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