Africa’s World Cup: nine of ten, and Morocco again
A record nine of the ten African teams reached the Round of 32, four of them for the first time — and Morocco carried the flag to the quarterfinals.
If the expanded World Cup was designed to widen football’s map, no confederation seized it like Africa. Nine of the continent’s ten entrants advanced from the group stage — a knockout haul that dwarfed anything before it.
The breadth was staggering. South Africa, Ivory Coast, Cape Verde and DR Congo all reached the World Cup knockouts for the first time in their history, joining the more familiar names of Morocco, Senegal, Egypt, Algeria and Ghana.
Morocco, once more
And at the front, once again, were the Atlas Lions. Four years on from their historic semifinal, Morocco knocked out co-hosts Canada 3-0 in the Round of 16 before running into France, who edged a tight quarterfinal 2-0. It was the deepest run of any team outside Europe and South America, and it confirmed Morocco’s place among the tournament’s genuine powers rather than its romantics.
This was not a fluke or a fairytale. This was a continent arriving in numbers.
Cape Verde — a nation of barely half a million — held eventual champions Spain to a goalless draw and reached the last 32 on debut. The expanded format was supposed to democratise the World Cup. In the summer of 2026, Africa cashed the cheque.