Egypt and Morocco in Last 16, but Africa's World Cup Underdelivered

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Egypt and Morocco are in the last 16 after shootouts but the continent’s pyramid appears to be getting broader rather than much higher

For Africa, this World Cup feels like one of those classic memes from the early days of social media. Is it a gold and white dress or a black and blue dress? Is it a duck or a rabbit? Has this been a good World Cup for Africa or one that underlines the ongoing problems of football on the continent? It probably depends where you’re standing.

For years the Confederation of African Football (Caf) had been arguing that five slots were not enough for its 54 members: only 9% of African sides were represented at a World Cup, while 50% of South America’s members were. To which the response was that South American nations had won the World Cup 10 times, whereas Africa hadn’t even had a semi-finalist until Morocco got to the last four in Qatar in 2022. Getting the balance right between representation and the maintenance of quality isn’t easy and, for all the flaws of a 48-team tournament, the fact that Africa could be given nine guaranteed slots, plus the possibility of an additional one through the intercontinental play-offs – which was claimed by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) – is a positive.

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