MOGAMAD ALLIE: Qatar 2022 has been a good World Cup for Africa

As the 22nd edition of the World Cup in Qatar reaches the quarterfinal stage, it’s become clear that the gap is swiftly closing between the game’s traditional powerhouses and the smaller footballing nations.

The group stages of this tournament have been arguably the most exciting in the 92-year history of the World Cup, providing huge upsets that few would have envisaged.

Who would have predicted Saudi Arabia beating two-time champions Argentina, Japan overcoming Spain and Germany in the space of 10 days, Tunisia emerging victorious over former colonial masters France, Cameroon ending a nine-game winless run at the World Cup by handing Brazil their first defeat in the group stages since 1998, and Morocco topping a group that included 2018 runners-up Croatia and second-ranked Belgium?

The African representation in the second round may not have breached the ceiling of two, but at least it’s an improvement on the failure of any of the continent’s five teams to progress beyond the group stage four years ago in Russia.

With the seven wins achieved by Senegal (2), Morocco (2), Ghana (1), Cameroon (1) and Tunisia (1), the African contingent broke the previous record of four victories at a World Cup tournament achieved in 2002 and 2010.

In taking seven points from their group matches, Morocco became only the fourth African team — after Cameroon (1982), Morocco (1986) and Senegal (2002) — to go through the opening round undefeated, while the Atlas Lions and the Teranga Lions of Senegal are the first African sides since Ghana in 2006 to win two matches during the group stage.

There were just five defeats for African sides, the fewest since 1990, and a record for tournaments containing five Caf teams, which has been the case since 1994. This neatly fits the narrative of a more open World Cup, with no team preserving a 100% record through the group stage for the first time since 1994.

The Atlas Lions of Morocca became the first African team to win a group since Nigeria did so in 1998, so it’s fair to say this World Cup has been a relatively good one for Africa, though African teams are still far from being serious contenders to lift the golden trophy for the first time.

In a major boost to underline the global character of the beautiful game, all but one of Fifa’s six confederations — Oceania being the exception — had representatives in the last 16. Six of the second-round fixtures featured teams from outside Fifa’s traditional strongholds of Europe and South America compared with only two in Russia four years ago.

The qualification of Japan, Australia and South Korea for the knockout stages provided a clear manifestation of the continuing rise of football in the Asian Confederation. It was the first time that three teams from that region appeared in the second round, eclipsing the record of two set in 2002 when South Korea, who co-hosted with Japan, went all the way to the semifinals, albeit on the back of some controversial refereeing decisions.

The quality of the African teams has clearly been enhanced by Fifa’s relaxing of their change in nationality ruling that now makes it easier for players who represented one country at junior level, or who played in no more than three internationals (outside tournaments) while under the age of 21, to switch allegiance.

This has significantly widened the talent pool and already the North African teams, particularly Morocco, have capitalised on recruiting European-born players with parental ties to their country. No fewer than 14 of the Atlas Lions’ 26-man World Cup squad were born in Europe while three more left the country at an early age. This is in stark contrast to the 1998 World Cup squad that included only two players born outside the country.

A growing number of footballers representing the African diaspora are making themselves available for countries where their parents or grandparents were born, and their impact has been evident in Qatar. 

It’s also been pleasing to see — while superstars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Luka Modric, Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller are likely playing at their last World Cup — there is a rich array of talent who have already picked up the baton. Players such as Gavi (18), Jude Bellingham (19), Jamal Musiala (19), Pedri (20), Mohammed Kudus (22), Cody Gakpo (23) and Kylian Mbappe (23) have all displayed maturity beyond their years on the biggest stage of all.

As Africa’s two superstars, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, enter the twilight of their careers, Ghana’s Kudus is primed to step into their shoes as the continent’s leading player on the world stage. The Accra-born striker, who has already attracted the attention of many of Europe’s top clubs with eye-catching performances for Ajax in the Champions League, further enhanced his reputation with some outstanding performances for the Black Stars in Qatar.

Kudus’ excellent ball retention, his movement, dribbling ability and his clinical left foot have caught the eye of several clubs who are keen on signing him in the January transfer window.

Unlike four years ago when doom and gloom pervaded African football after the early exits of the continent’s five representatives in Russia, this time there is a little more hope that better days lie ahead. With nine African teams due to play in the expanded 48-team format in 2026, it represents an opportunity for a wider array of talent to showcase their skills on the world’s biggest stage.