Senegal Professional Championship kickoff delayed to 17 October

Senegal’s professional championship will now begin on Saturday 17 October 2026, two weeks later than originally scheduled. The emergency committee of the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) approved the change unanimously after meeting on 29 September. The opening had been planned for Saturday 3 October, but the federation decided that the domestic calendar needed to be adjusted around a concentrated programme of international fixtures involving several Senegalese national teams.

The FSF said the postponement was intended to create better coordination between national competitions and international commitments. It also said the decision was taken to protect the wider interests of Senegalese football and to give the national selections the right conditions for preparation and participation. The change affects the start of the professional championship rather than cancelling the competition, with the new date set two weeks after the original launch.

The main senior team is one of the selections involved in the congestion. Senegal will face Comoros on 4 October 2026, one day after the championship had been due to start. The proximity of those dates was central to the scheduling problem, particularly for clubs whose players may be required for the senior national team. Starting the league later removes the direct overlap between the planned opening weekend and the international fixture.

The under-23 team also has a two-match programme against The Gambia. Those games are scheduled for 2 and 4 October, placing both fixtures inside the period originally reserved for the championship’s opening. The U20 selection faces the Democratic Republic of Congo on 1 and 4 October. Together, those matches create another set of demands for players, technical staff and clubs at the same time as professional teams would normally be preparing for their first league fixtures.

Senegal’s U17 team is due to play France on 3 and 5 October. The first of those matches falls on the original opening date, while the second comes two days later. The beach soccer national team is also scheduled to meet Nigeria on 3 and 4 October. The four teams involved in these programmes are therefore not separate from the domestic planning issue: their matches are spread across the same days in which clubs would have been completing preparations and beginning the professional season.

The combined schedule covers five national selections: the senior team, the U23s, the U20s, the U17s and the beach soccer side. Their opponents are Comoros, The Gambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, France and Nigeria. The fixtures run from 1 to 5 October, leaving the originally planned 3 October start surrounded by international activity. The federation’s decision treats the congestion as a single calendar issue rather than as a problem linked to only one national team.

The FSF has instructed the Senegalese Professional Football League, the professional clubs and all other parties involved to incorporate 17 October into their planning. That instruction places the next administrative steps with the league and the clubs, which must revise preparations made for the 3 October launch. It also gives the domestic competition a clear new starting point while the national teams complete their early-October engagements.

The delayed start shows how the professional championship is being fitted around Senegal’s international programme for the 2026 season. No new opening fixtures or revised round schedule were provided with the announcement. For now, the confirmed change is the move from Saturday 3 October to Saturday 17 October. The national-team matches remain scheduled between 1 and 5 October, and the league’s professional clubs must now organise their preparations around the later date.