The end of an era in Algeria

Today, following Algeria’s elimination from the 2026 World Cup after a 2–0 defeat to Switzerland, captain Riyad Mahrez announced his retirement from the national team.

In just over a decade, the 35-year-old winger has built a legacy that places him amongst the greatest – for many, the greatest – in the history of Algerian football.

A legacy that spans generations

Born in Clichy, on the outskirts of Paris, Mahrez’s mother is of Algerian and Moroccan descent and his father is Algerian. In 2014, he chose to represent Algeria on the international stage.

Since then, he has made 119 appearances for the “Warriors of the Desert”, becoming the second-most capped player for the national team, behind only defender Aïssa Mandi, who has 122 caps.

Currently playing for Al-Ahli in the Saudi league, the forward is also Algeria’s second-highest goalscorer of all time, with 40 goals, behind only Islam Slimani, who has 46.

Continental champion

Mahrez’s greatest achievement for Algeria came when he captained the national team’s “golden generation” to victory in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations – only the country’s second title in the tournament’s history, almost 30 years after their first triumph in 1990.

More than just a leader off the pitch, Mahrez was a key figure on the pitch and spearheaded the team’s historic campaign.

In late 2018, he scored two goals in a 4–1 away victory against Togo, a result that secured qualification for the tournament. In Algeria’s opening match of the competition, he made his mark against Kenya, setting the tone for the campaign from the outset.

In one of the most memorable moments of that campaign, he scored the decisive goal in the 96th minute against Nigeria, which sent the team through to the final.

Since his first appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2015, no other Algerian player has scored more goals than him in the tournament (eight).

Decisive right to the end

By the time the 2026 World Cup came around, Mahrez was expected to lead another standout campaign – his second World Cup and Algeria’s fifth appearance in the competition’s history, following more than a decade’s absence.

Just as in the qualifiers for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, he proved decisive once again: he scored and put in a superb performance in the 3–0 away victory against Somalia, which secured the team’s place in the tournament.

He then shone once more with two goals and a standout performance – voted man of the match – in the 3–3 draw against Austria, a result that secured qualification for the knockout stages. In that match, he became the oldest Algerian player to score at a World Cup, aged 35 years and 126 days.

Farewell to an idol

Although the Desert Warriors’ journey in the tournament – just like Mahrez’s time with the national team – has come to an end, he concludes his career level with Salah Assad, Abdelmoumene Djabou and Islam Slimani as Algeria’s all-time leading goalscorer at World Cups.

In total, Mahrez has scored 40 goals and provided 45 assists in 119 appearances for the national team.

His club career is also highly impressive, with 16 titles won across various competitions and countries.

Among his key moments are his decisive role in Leicester City’s promotion to the Premier League and, the following season, his leadership in the club’s historic league title win – the first in the club’s 132-year history. In doing so, he also became the first Algerian player to lift the trophy. Later, whilst at Manchester City, he won four English league titles and was part of the squad that won the club’s first-ever Champions League title in 2023.

On an individual level, he was named CAF African Player of the Year in 2016 and, in the same year, also made history as the first African player to win the PFA Player of the Year award.

Throughout his club career, he has made 669 appearances, scoring 198 goals and providing 156 assists.

Mahrez remains the only player to have represented the Algerian national team to have been nominated for the ‘Ballon d’Or’, having finished 12th in the 2022 edition.