Yahoo Sports Adingra or Lookman? Rank African POTY contenders
The men's and women's African footballer of the year will be crowned on Monday, with five players vying for each award.
Ademola Lookman leads the male contenders after impressing for Atalanta over the past 12 months.
The 27-year-old forward played a key role in helping the Italian club win the first European trophy in their history last season.
Former Ghana international Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu has set aside traditional West African rivalries and is tipping the Nigerian to pick up the trophy.
"I will support him to win because of what he's done for Atalanta, winning the Europa League and scoring a hat-trick in the final," Agyemang-Badu told BBC Sport Africa.
Lookman was a runner-up with the Super Eagles at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon), with Ivory Coast clinching the trophy on home soil.
Simon Adingra set up both goals for the Elephants that February day in Abidjan.
"Adingra was absolutely outstanding - the key player in the knockout stages," former South Africa midfielder Dean Furman told the BBC.
"He was rightly named young player the tournament and man of the match (in the final). He gets my vote."
South Africa goalkeeper Ronwen Williams won the golden glove at Afcon 2023, having saved four penalties in Bafana Bafana's quarter-final shootout victory against Cape Verde.
Morocco defender Achraf Hakimi, a bronze medallist at the Paris Olympics, and Guinea striker Serhou Guirassy round out the men's shortlist.
We want you to rank the contenders for the men's and, below, the women's award.
Can anyone beat Banda?
Zambia striker Barbra Banda is the stand-out contender for the women's award - not least after being named BBC Women's Footballer of the Year.
She fired Orlando Pride to the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) title and was in fine goalscoring form for the Copper Queens at the Olympic Games once again.
But Temwa Chawinga was the only player to outscore Banda in the NWSL last season, with 21 goals to the Zambian's 17.
The Malawi forward is nominated alongside her older sister Tabitha Chawinga, who led the scoring charts in the French top flight last season.
Morocco's Sanaa Mssoudy, another forward, scooped the accolade of best player at this year's African Women's Champions League while Nigeria's Chiamaka Nnadozie rounds off the nominees after being named as the best female goalkeeper in France.
The Super Eagles keeper was full off praise for Tabitha Chawinga when she spoke to BBC Sport Africa earlier this year.
"She is such a great player and a good person. She is such a humble girl," Nnadozie said.
"In a few years there is the possibility of her winning the Ballon d'Or. Very soon the world will respect her.
"She scored 18 goals (last season) but I am happy being the only goalkeeper she couldn't score against in the league."
You can rank the contenders for the women's award below.
