Belgian Saintfiet quits as Mali coach

The Malian football federation, FEMAFOOT, later confirmed that the 53-year-old had resigned after two years in charge of the Eagles, who are ranked eighth in Africa and 44th in the world.

"I would like to thank my players, staff, FEMAFOOT, the government, the media and the fans for the fantastic two years we had together in Mali," he posted.

Under widely-travelled Saintfiet, Mali failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, finishing third behind winners Ghana and Madagascar in Group I.

The Belgian set his sights on reaching the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals in Morocco, but they lost to Senegal in the quarter-finals.

Mali were the sixth African national team coached by Saintfiet after Namibia, Ethiopia, Malawi, Togo and the Gambia. He also coached clubs in Tanzania and South Africa.