Moroccan winger Brahim Diaz had the chance to write his name into Moroccan history after winning a penalty deep into second-half stoppage time of a goalless Africa Cup of Nations final against Senegal. Victory would have ended Morocco’s 50-year wait for an AFCON title.

Instead, Diaz opted for a Panenka—a high-risk penalty technique that ultimately cost him and Morocco AFCON glory.

The Real Madrid attacker, whose five goals had carried the hosts to the final, attempted a delicate chipped effort down the middle. It backfired catastrophically. Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy stood his ground and caught the ball with embarrassing ease.

What is a Panenka?

In football, a Panenka is a penalty technique in which the taker delicately chips the ball down the centre of the goal, relying on the goalkeeper committing to a dive either way.

The move was pioneered by Czech midfielder Antonín Panenka in the Euro 1976 final, when he calmly chipped the winning penalty past West Germany’s Sepp Maier. That same year was also the last time Morocco lifted the AFCON trophy—a cruel historical symmetry.

Since then, the Panenka has become a symbol of audacity and nerve, repeated—and perfected—by some of the game’s greatest players on the biggest stages.

Zinedine Zidane famously executed one in the 2006 World Cup final. Andrea Pirlo did so against England at Euro 2012, with Sergio Ramos following suit for Spain in the same tournament. Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Thierry Henry, Neymar, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have all succeeded with it.

But the margin for error is unforgiving.

Zidane and Pirlo both missed Panenka’s earlier in their careers. Sergio Aguero, Raheem Sterling, and Peter Crouch have also seen attempts fail.

More recently, Brentford goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher easily saved Enzo Le Fée’s effort, while Ademola Lookman’s attempt in 2020 remains one of the most infamous.

For Diaz, however, the consequences were far heavier. What should have been a crowning moment became a defining error — AFCON glory.