Which African Countries Will be at the 2026 World Cup?

The 2026 World Cup will be played between June 11th and July 19th in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. This will be the biggest World Cup of all time in terms of the number of participating nations. There were nine direct slots available for African teams plus one playoff slot.

African Qualifying World Cup 2026

The group stage of CAF 2026 World Cup qualifying saw the teams split into nine groups each with 6 nations. The teams played each other once, home and away, and the winner of each group qualified automatically for the tournament. The four best placed runners-up entered the playoffs and the winner qualified for the Inter-confederation play-offs.

With heavyweights like Morocco and Senegal leading the charge, the stakes for fans and bettors alike are at an all-time high. For those looking to back their favourite teams, understanding how to access bet9ja old mobile can provide a distinct advantage. The old app is still preferred by many Nigerian gamblers due to easier and faster use when compared to the new version.

It was no surprise to see Morocco and Senegal qualify for the 2026 World Cup. Morocco were excellent at the 2022 event in Qatar and are now considered one of the strongest teams on the African continent. Senegal, who beat Morocco in the controversial Africa Cup of Nations final, also qualified for the tournament.

In terms of the best qualification record, Tunisia qualified from Group H with 28 points from their 10 matches, winning 9 and drawing one of their games.

Both Ivory Coast and Egypt topped their groups with 26 points while Algeria finished top of Group G with 25 points. Cape Verde caused one of the biggest shocks of qualifying to beat Cameroon to top spot in Group D on 23 points while South Africa only needed 18 points to win Group C and qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

South Africa forced Nigeria into second place in Group C, but hope was not lost for the Super Eagles. They faced a semifinal and potential final to represent CAF at the Inter-confederation play-offs.

Nigeria required extra time to defeat Gabon in the semifinal but ran out 4-1 winners. Cameroon were shocked by DR Congo, losing their semifinal 1-0. Into the final and Nigeria faced DR Congo for a place in the Inter-confederation playoffs. It took just 3 minutes for Nigeria to open the scoring, and they seemed well placed to continue their journey to the 2026 World Cup. DR Congo had other ideas, and they scored the equaliser in the 32nd minute.

There were no further goals, and the match went to penalties. Nigeria missed their first and second penalties and when Semi Ajayi missed their sixth kick, DR Congo were the team celebrating as they progressed to the final of the Inter-confederation playoffs.

DR Congo will play New Caledonia or Jamaica for place at the 2026 World Cup. If DR Congo win and secure Africa an additional place at the tournament, there will be 10 CAF teams participating in the tournament.

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