The Léopards, DR Congo’s national football team, endured a painful campaign at the 1974 FIFA World Cup in West Germany. Their Yugoslav coach, Blagoje Vidinić, had earned praise for leading the squad to victory at the 1974 Africa Cup of Nations. ALSO READ: What to know about FIFA’s 2026 World Cup music project However, he was widely condemned for a calculated act of betrayal: allegedly engineering a path for his Yugoslav compatriots, who were in the same group as the Léopards, to defeat his team 9–0. Vidinić substituted Robert Kazadi Mwamba, a remarkable goalkeeper who had helped the Léopards win both the 1968 and 1974 AFCON titles, after just 20 minutes of play. In 1969 and 1976, Brazilian football legend Pelé visited Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda, and, after witnessing African football talent firsthand, predicted that an African nation would win the World Cup before 2000. That has not yet happened but African teams have produced several historic runs. Notably, Morocco became the first African country to reach a World Cup semi-final in 2022. African representation at the World Cup has grown from one team in 1934 to a fixed allocation of five between 1998 and 2022. At the 2026 edition, that number doubled to 10, with Algeria, Cape Verde, DR Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, and Tunisia. Though more slots alone will not deliver the trophy, two factors make 2026 different. First, African teams no longer enter tournaments burdened by a colonial inferiority complex or relying on the intervention of marabouts. Second, they no longer depend on foreign managers like Vidinić. African teams shed the underdog mentality. Powered by a winner’s mindset, they now arrive at tournaments expecting to win. Morocco’s run to the 2022 semi-finals confirmed that African teams are legitimate contenders for football’s ultimate prize. A quiet revolution has also taken hold on the touchline. For decades, African federations were criticised for a so-called “white-coach-in-a-suitcase” approach – bringing in European managers, men who coached with their minds but not their hearts. At the 2026 World Cup, seven of the 10 African coaches are Africans, marking an unprecedented milestone in continental football leadership. Walid Regragui of Morocco, Pape Thiaw of Senegal, Emerse Faé of Ivory Coast, Sami Trabelsi of Tunisia, Hossam Hassan of Egypt, Otto Addo of Ghana, and Pedro Leitão Brito of Cape Verde understand exactly what the shirt means to their people. Regragui led Morocco to a historic semi-final at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, defeating Spain and Portugal in the knockout rounds. Thiaw, a former striker with experience in Europe, rose through Senegal's national-team coaching structure. Faé, a former midfielder in the English Premier League, guided Ivory Coast to victory at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. Trabelsi, a former defender, brings extensive experience in international and club management. Hassan, Egypt's all-time leading scorer, is renowned for his leadership and competitive spirit. Addo led Ghana at the 2022 FIFA World Cup and has combined European coaching experience with deep knowledge of Ghanaian football. Meanwhile, Brito has been one of the architects of Cape Verde's rise in African football, building a highly organised and disciplined team despite limited resources. For them, 2026 is do or die. African teams are not entering this World Cup as footnotes. They are contenders. The era of mere participation is over. Africa steps onto the 2026 pitch to claim what has long been overdue. God bless Africa. The writer is a media specialist, historian, and playwright.
