Men play football after a memorial ceremony to remember migrants who lost their life at sea on the beach in Mbao, on February 6, 2025. Beaches like the one in Mbao are one of the many departure points for the thousands of Africans who have been taking the perilous Atlantic route for years, attempting to reach Europe mainly via the Spanish Canary Islands, often on overcrowded and outdated boats.Thousands of people have died on this route in recent years, many of them young Senegalese heavily affected by unemployment in search for a better future for them and their families. (Photo by PATRICK MEINHARDT / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK MEINHARDT/AFP via Getty Images)