Riyad Mahrez Retires from AFCON Following Loss Against Nigeria

On January 10, 2026, Riyad Mahrez played his last game in the Africa Cup of Nations. With Algeria inching closer to the AFCON quarter-finals, Riyad Mahrez made a shocking comment that hints at his possible retirement from international football in the near future. He said, “I really want to win this competition again. This will be my last.”

The Algeria national football team were unable to overcome favourites Nigeria in the quarter-final, suffering a 2-0 loss. Victor Osimhen and Akor Adams scored for Nigeria national football team in the knockout game.

Nobody in 2014 ever imagined that a single decision from Riyad Mahrez to represent Algeria over France would go on to define an entire generation of Algerian football. No wonder Riyad Mahrez is unarguably one of the greatest African footballers of all time, who has given innumerable moments of joy and happiness to African fans across decades.

Algeria have also qualified for FIFA World Cup 2026. They won every single one of their group games and defeated Congo in the Round of 16 to make it to the Quarter Finals.

In this article, we take a closer look at Riyad Mahrez's glorious footballing career and how he became one of the most capped and most decorated players in Algerian history.

Mahrez Led Algeria to AFCON 2019 Glory

The Algerian international's one of the most iconic moments was scoring that last-minute free-kick goal against Nigeria in the semi-finals of AFCON 2019. He was one of the standout players in the team and helped Algeria clinch their second AFCON title after 29 years.

He even featured for Algeria in FIFA World Cup 2014. Over the years, he has captained Algeria on several occasions and has become the most capped and most decorated player ever. He also stuck with the team throughout thick and thin. When Algeria failed to qualify for the last two editions of World Cup and also saw a shocking early exit as defending champions in AFCON, he didn't lose hope. Now, after twelve years, Algeria are back to FIFA World Cup and Mahrez is one of the lead protagonists of this fairytale story.

Mahrez's Club Career is More Glorious

When it comes to fairy tales and near-impossible stories, destiny finds its ways to put Mahrez in that story. One such interesting story was when he was part of the Leicester City squad that went on to win the Premier League in 2016. He became the first African player to win the PFA Team of the Year award. He later joined Manchester City and won multiple Premier League titles and UCLs. He is currently plying his trade with Al Ahli in Saudi Arabia, which won the AFC Champions League last season.