fifa world cup

What a vibe! Fans hold a Nelson Mandela portrait before the World Cup final. Photo by RAJESH JANTILAL / AFP)

World Cup 2022: A slice of African history to make us all proud

World Cup 2022 in Qatar sees five African nations slug it out with the planet’s finest. Here’s an amazing fact about them.

fifa world cup

What a vibe! Fans hold a Nelson Mandela portrait before the World Cup final. Photo by RAJESH JANTILAL / AFP)

World Cup 2022 will see five African nations scrambling for places in the knockout phase. African nations are making a special and unique piece of history in Qatar.

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World Cup 2022: African pride

For the first time in history, all five African nations at a FIFA World Cup will be playing under the tutelage of African coaches. Aliou Cissé, the Senegal boss, is the only one of these men who has managed at a World Cup before.

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Meet the coaches in charge of African nations

  • Ghana – Otto Addo (Ghanaian)
  • Senegal – Aliou Cissé (Senegalese)
  • Cameroon – Rigobert Song (Cameroonian)
  • Morocco – Walid Regragui (Moroccan)
  • Tunisia – Jalel Kadri (Tunisian)

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Talk about patriotism and national pride! Ghana is managed by a German-born Ghanaian, Senegal by a Senegalese legend from his playing days, and the same can be said for Cameroon. Walid Regragui is a fan favourite in Morocco while Jalel Kadri has vast management experience in his native Tunisia.

African stat. Tweet: @foodball_za / Twitter

Africa’s teams have a massive point to prove in Qatar, too. In 2018, for the first time since 1982, no side from the continent reached the knock-out stages at a World Cup. Hopefully that should change this year.

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world cup 2022
Jubilant South Africans celebrate Tshaba’s iconic opening goal of World Cup 2010. Photo by MUSTAFA OZER / AFP)

Keep up on some daily World Cup trivia via football stats nerd foodball_za.

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