Morocco rewrites African history at the World Cup

African teams have had a string of stunning results against the giants in World Cup history, but none like Morocco’s World Cup campaign in Qatar, which will fuel hopes of greater representation in future tournaments.

Morocco knocked out Belgium, Spain and Portugal, all placed in the world top ten in the FIFA rankings, to become the first African team to reach the semi-finals and are now hoping to beat reigning world champions France on Wednesday.

Cameroon defeated holders Argentina in their 1990 World Cup opening match in Italy to reach the quarter-finals, while Senegal did the same to France as the French began their title defense in 2002.

But otherwise, the continent’s results at the World Cup have been limited, which is why former African Football Confederation president Issa Hayatou has curbed calls from his members for more spots in the tournament.

“We need results to have a strong cause,” he said repeatedly at CAF meetings.

Of the 160 matches played by African teams at the World Cup, only 37 were won, with a success rate of less than 25%.

Most of Africa was still under colonial rule when the World Cup resumed after World War II, but as countries became independent, CAF membership increased and Africa began to evolve.

Morocco had already been the first African team to qualify for the second round in 1986 in Mexico, beating Portugal to finish ahead of England in their group.

The Moroccan conquest promised it would not take long for Africa to produce a World Cup winner, but only Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002 and Ghana in 2010 had managed to reach the quarter-finals.

Africa have nine places – plus a possible extra play-off spot – in the expanded 48-team edition of the 2026 World Cup, but there are sure to be more bids now.

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Source: Terra

Camila

Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.