CAF president hails Africa’s World Cup performance

Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF) President Dr. Patrice Motsepe lauded the African national teams' performance at the FIFA World Cup 2026, calling it a historic achievement that demonstrates the continent's growing football prowess. The tournament saw an unprecedented success rate for African representation, with nine of the ten participating nations advancing from the group stage to the Round of 32.

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Significant progress and successes were achieved by the African National Teams at the FIFA World Cup 2026 and I am very proud of their performances.

This remarkable qualification rate means that African teams constituted 28.1% of the teams that reached the knockout stage, a significant figure given they represented 20.8% of the total 48 participating nations. Morocco notably reached the quarter-finals for the second consecutive World Cup, while Egypt made it to the Round of 16. Other teams like Cabo Verde, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, South Africa, Ghana, and Tunisia also received praise for their performances.

"Significant progress and successes were achieved by the African National Teams at the FIFA World Cup 2026 and I am very proud of their performances," Motsepe stated. He highlighted that the 90% qualification rate from the group stage to the Round of 32 is the highest percentage achieved by African teams to date.

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The nine African National Teams that qualified from the Group Stage to the Round of 32 made history at the FIFA World Cup 2026, as this is 90 per cent of the African National Teams that participated, and is the highest percentage to qualify to date.

Looking ahead, Motsepe announced that CAF will host a conference to build on these achievements. The event will bring together national team coaches, technical staff, former players, and football experts to evaluate the 2026 World Cup performances. The goal is to identify areas for improvement and formulate recommendations to ensure even greater success for African teams in the 2030 FIFA World Cup.

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We have also identified specific areas where there is room for improvement and I am confident that the coaches, technical teams and players will implement the necessary improvements.

Motsepe expressed confidence that coaches, technical teams, and players will implement necessary improvements. He reaffirmed CAF's commitment to supporting the continent's football development, aiming to elevate African football on the global stage.

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CAF will be hosting a conference and will invite the National Team coaches, technical teams, former African National Team players and other football experts and stakeholders to evaluate and assess the performances of the African National Teams at the FIFA World Cup 2026, to make recommendations that will ensure that the African National Teams will be even more successful at the FIFA World Cup 2030.