Africa's Historic Success at the FIFA World Cup Silences Skeptics

As African nations continue to exit the FIFA World Cup playoffs, Hugo Broos believes the problem is no longer talent, tactical understanding, or experience. According to the coach of 'Bafana Bafana,' the real reason lies in insufficient concentration.

Momentum and Team Issues

Continental Africa entered the tournament with unprecedented momentum. Nine out of ten continental representatives passed the group stage in the expanded 48-team format, which was a historic achievement and demonstrated a significant rise in global competitiveness. Nevertheless, African national teams consistently suffered painful defeats, often after they seemed capable of controlling or at least managing the match.

Broos sees a clear pattern in these events. He noted: 'I think it's a matter of concentration and focus. When you see DRC losing the game, when you see Senegal losing the game, it's just a loss of focus, a loss of concentration.'

The Psychological Aspect of the Game

The Belgian tactician did not exclude his own team from this criticism. 'Bafana' themselves experienced dangerous moments throughout the tournament and ultimately lost in stoppage time to Canada, ending their historic World Cup participation. Broos admitted: 'And we also had such moments, at the beginning of the game, in the last game, at the end of the game.'

In his opinion, the problem goes beyond tactics; it is psychological endurance—the ability to maintain emotional control and tactical discipline throughout a high-level playoff match. He emphasized: 'So I think, yes, a little, how should I put it, African teams suffer from this. Maintaining focus for 90 minutes or 120 minutes.'

Squad Composition and Tournament Examples

This observation becomes even more apparent when looking at the composition of modern African teams. Unlike past eras, many of these squads are now formed almost entirely by players who compete in European clubs and high-intensity leagues every week. Broos explained: 'Even African teams with all players who play in Europe. Because we are talking about teams that do not have a player, no player from the local championship in their squads.'

Examples from the current tournament only strengthen his argument. Senegal ceded a dominant position late in its playoff match, and Ivory Coast and DR Congo also collapsed after failing to handle crucial moments properly. Broos commented: 'Because yes, if you lose a game like Senegal 2-0 every time, the advantage is zero. And then 10 minutes later they lose the game. The last 10 minutes of the game.' He also mentioned: 'Ivory Coast 17 (the last 17 minutes of the game). So yes, that is what needs to be worked on.'

Conclusion on Progress

For Broos, the disappointment lies in the fact that these defeats were preventable. The quality gap is narrowing: African teams are increasingly competing physically, tactically, and technically with the world's strongest powers. However, the inability to maintain concentration at critical moments continues to undermine progress. He warned: 'And yes, if this doesn't disappear, you will have games that you lose unnecessarily.'

He concluded that Senegal, Ivory Coast, and DRC should not have lost those matches, and that Africa is no longer fighting for World Cup qualification but trying to finish what it started.

The Football World Cup has once again demonstrated persistent Eurocentrism towards African nations, which is evident in the lack of respect and bias in coverage of matches involving teams such as Morocco, DR Congo, and Ghana, despite their strong performances and high rankings.

Example of Media Bias

During the match in Atlanta, where England risked elimination in the Round of 32, DR Congo held a 1-0 lead shortly before the end of the game. However, a goal fest from Harry Kane over 11 minutes secured England's place in the Round of 16. Despite DR Congo's commendable play, recognition of their efforts was noticeably diminished. While the media often labels a defeat of a top-four team as a shock regardless of the opponent, the tone becomes more dismissive when the opponent is an African nation.

In the BBC report on this match, the first paragraph stated: 'England was 15 minutes away from one of the most humiliating defeats in World Cup history, until late heroic actions by Harry Kane helped them overcome DR Congo and reach the quarter-finals against Mexico.' In response to this, dual citizen GregS commented, criticizing the BBC for its 'imperial/post-colonial bias,' asserting that DR Congo played at a very high level in the first half. Another reader, Sean, expressed disagreement with the term 'humiliation,' calling it disrespectful to Congo.

Comparison with Other Matches

Although England ranks fourth in the world, DR Congo is an emerging African team that deserved to participate in the tournament. A loss for England would be disappointing, but framing this event as a humiliation inevitably diminishes the quality of the opposing team. Furthermore, in the group stage last month, England drew with Ghana. This result was positive for the African team, helping them advance to the Round of 32, and watching the fourth-ranked England fail to beat disciplined Ghana was quite satisfying. Even Sky Sports' report described Ghana in the opening sentence as 'the second lowest-ranked team at the 2026 World Cup.'

Even Morocco's victory over the Netherlands on Tuesday was widely presented as a major surprise. Although the Netherlands remains a traditional global football power, Morocco is the highest-ranked African team and surpasses the Netherlands in FIFA ranking. They also reached the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup, but their triumph in Guadeloupe was perceived as one of the biggest surprises of the tournament.

Status of African Teams in the Playoffs

Currently, Morocco is the only African team to have advanced to the Round of 16. Cameroon, Egypt, and Ghana will play on Friday and Saturday (South Africa time). The Cameroon team will face reigning champions Argentina, where a victory would truly be considered a big surprise. Egypt plays against Australia, and Ghana plays against Colombia, giving Africa a real chance to advance at least two more teams into the knockout stage. Ghana has a rich history, having been a quarter-finalist in the World Cup.

It cannot be forgotten that during the 2010 World Cup, the incident involving Luis Suarez's handball, which many consider a true 'Hand of God' moment, cost Ghana a spot in the semi-finals. More recently, the 'Black Stars' brought Germany close to defeat in a tight 2-1 match earlier this year. No one claims that African teams should always be favorites against European opponents. However, perhaps it is time to abandon the outdated assumption that any defeat by an African team is automatically a humiliation or disgrace.

Regardless of the outcomes of the remainder of the World Cup, the author hopes that the European football establishment will start paying more attention to the names of the African nations they face on the biggest stage of the game.