Sports
Africa’s Long Road To 2010 W/Cup
“The World Cup is coming to Africa, I can’t believe it. It just makes me believe that anything is possible.”
The words of a female DJ as I listened to the radio in Lesotho just recently. An attitude which encapsulates the wonder many are feeling across Africa, still incredulous that the planet’s biggest sports event is coming to the continent.
To the only continent never to have hosted the Olympics nor the World Cup. Until now that is.
For those living in South Africa itself, the incredulity goes even deeper. Twenty years ago, hosting the World Cup was an impossible dream. Still under the grip of apartheid, South Africa was a pariah state, banned from football by Fifa, and the prospect of playing any match, let alone hosting the world, was a mere flight of fancy.
But now we are less than 20 days away from a tournament which many, including former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, fully expect to change Africa’s poor global standing, broadly known for such negative images as war, famine, HIV/Aids corruption – while the more football-minded simply hope a new playing generation will shine brightly in 10-15 years’ time, as those who grew up inspired by Africa’s first World Cup hit maturity.
“I’m hoping an African side can do really well, perhaps even win it,” says former South Africa defender Mark Fish. “Then we can ask Fifa why we can’t have seven, eight, perhaps even nine teams representing Africa in future World Cups.”
That the World Cup is in South Africa is largely thanks to the efforts of Fifa chief Sepp Blatter and former anti-apartheid activist Danny Jordaan, who has been working relentlessly since 1994 to get the unlikely dream off the ground.
Yet the foundations were laid many years ago. The 1966 World Cup is not the most obvious turning point but that year Africa boycotted the finals in protest at the allocation of one place between Asia and itself at the ‘World Cup’.
The dramatic move, which came exactly 100 years after the continent’s first recorded football match, worked, for Africa had its own representative at the next finals.
1974 was also a significant milestone. Not at the World Cup though, where the maiden sub-Saharan appearance was a disaster as Zaire (now DR Congo) lost all their matches with a 0-14 goal record.
However, the real nadir came when Mwepu Ilunga infamously ran out of the wall to hammer away a Brazilian free-kick, the African champions attracting widespread ridicule for not knowing the rules.
But that year, Joao Havelange used dozens of African votes to win the Fifa presidency off Sir Stanley Rous, and the game changed forever, booming commercially.
The Brazilian had promised the continent its own prizes in return, which came as the World Cup expanded to 24 teams in 1982, meaning Africa now had two places, while Fifa’s inaugural youth tournaments were held in Tunisia (the U20s in 1977) and Nigeria won (what is now the U17 World Cup in 1985).
Had a certain Mr Dempsey not come along, Africa might already have staged the World Cup but Blatter acted decisively following that voting failure in 2000.
One month later, he oversaw the installation of Fifa’s rotation system and one year later, Africa was chosen to start the new policy, which explains Blatter’s rare popularity here.
“We’re very grateful to Fifa and Blatter,” says Fish.
“The journey of African football has been a long one and South Africa, from the apartheid era to the democratic elections of 1994, has also come a long way. Now it’s a massive step to be hosting the world’s biggest sporting event on our continent.”
Africa has displayed its enormous passion for football time and again, and many more tales will emerge during what could be the most colourful World Cup to date. And with the finals providing the greatest 31-day commercial for the continent, pride will swell from Cape Town to Cairo and from Dakar to Dar-es-Salaam.
In a land crippled by nepotism and corruption, football is a rare meritocracy, an area where an individual can rely on his own talents to move up in the world. By coincidence or not, it’s also one of few areas where Africa does not just live with the best but beats them too.
The life story of George Weah, who rose from a Monrovian slum to be crowned the world’s best footballer in 1995, is still an inspiration to many.
Football even had the capacity to briefly stop his homeland’s civil war since Liberia matches in the 1990s would, to quote the current president, ‘bring sudden voluntary ceasefires between the warring factions’ as they joined their enemies to watch the games.
“It is in our hands to unite our country, our continent and the world in a footballing feast,” South African President Jacob Zuma said recently.
Now where’s that damned vuvuzela?
Edwards is with BBC Sports.
Piers Edwards
The 2006 Commonwealth Games silver medallist spoke to Tidesports source her desire to defend her para singles title in the women’s category and to also secure a qualification berth for both the regional West Africa para table tennis event in Abeokuta in September and the continental championship billed to hold in Cairo, Egypt in November.
The multiple Paralympian said, “My expectation is to come out great at this wonderful tournament and to qualify for the forthcoming tournament that is coming up in Nigeria and Egypt in September and November. Last tournament, I won the singles. I won three golds at the last ValueJet tournament. And I want to believe and hope that I will maintain my position by coming in first position.”
Ugwueke had featured in the para event at the 56th Molade Okoya-Thomas National Table Tennis Championships, held at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in January, where she suffered a stunning defeat to eventual finalist and tournament runner-up Taiye Oyinloye, who in turn was beaten 3-1 (11-3, 7-11, 11-6, 11-9) by Commonwealth Games medallist, Kate Oputa, to become the women’s class 1-5 champion.
The ValueJet Lagos Para table tennis Open, which is in its seventh edition, is an event sanctioned by the governing body ITTF Africa and put together by the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation in partnership with Lagos State Sports Commission.
The event will come to a close on July 11, with the competition serving as qualifiers for the country’s players for the regional tournament in Abeokuta.
A total of 98 athletes—57 men and 41 women—from Nigeria, Benin Republic, and Togo are competing in the singles events.
Notable performances have come from Alabi, Agunbiade, Ogunkunle, and Commonwealth Games medallists Kate Oputa and Faith Obazuaye, who have showcased their class against emerging talents across various classifications.
Their presence has intensified the battle for podium finishes, with top seeds asserting dominance in their respective singles events.
The AIU announced in the June 2025 sanctions list on July 1 that 21-year-old quarter-miler Uko was found guilty of an anti-doping rule violation committed on June 5 2024. Her infraction falls under whereabouts failures, having missed three tests within a 12-month period.
The AIU confirmed that her period of ineligibility will run until 23 July 2026 and all results recorded from the date of the infraction have been officially disqualified.
Uko rose to fame after clinching three gold medals at the 2021 World U-20 Championships in Nairobi, winning the women’s 400 metres, 4x400m relay, and the mixed 4x400m relay.
Stephen Eloji (June 2028)
Sprinter and hurdler Stephen Eloji tested positive for dehydrochloromethyl-
The 25-year-old was active in the American collegiate circuit, recording strong performances in the 110m hurdles and relay events as recently as April 2024, including at the Pepsi Florida Relays and Music City Challenge.
Ada Princess Bright (September 2027)
Ada Princess Bright is serving a four-year ineligibility period after testing positive for Metenolone during the National Athletics Trials held on July 6 2023 in Benin City.
She had an active season prior to her suspension, competing in national meets in Lagos, Uyo, and Benin, and earning a relay gold at the African U20 Championships in Ndola, Zambia.
Grace Nwokocha (August 2025)
Nwokocha is serving a three-year ban after testing positive for SARMS substances including Ostarine and Ligandrol during the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
The fallout was significant, as Nigeria was stripped of its women’s 4x100m relay gold medal at the Games. Prior to her suspension, she had qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, posted a personal best of 11.00s in the 100m, and reached the semi-finals in the 100m and 200m at the 2022 World Athletics Championships. She is ineligible to compete until 2 August 2025.
Yinka Ajayi (January 2030)
Ajayi, a 400m specialist and one-time Olympic representative, is currently serving an extended eight-year ban for multiple anti-doping violations.
The first sanction, issued after she tested positive for Metenolone in an out-of-competition test in Iowa, USA, led to a four-year ban starting in December 2021. However, further findings of tampering led to an additional four-year penalty in 2024, extending her suspension until January 25 2030.
Glory Okon (January 2026)
Glory Okon is serving a four-year ban for testing positive for Metenolone following an out-of-competition test conducted on December 2 2021 in Nigeria.
She previously won gold in the 400 metres at the 2019 African U-20 Championships in Abidjan and featured prominently at the 2021 National Sports Festival in Benin City.
Blessing Okagbare (July 2031)
Once the face of Nigerian athletics, Okagbare is now serving a 10-year ban following multiple anti-doping rule violations. She tested positive for human growth hormone and EPO in an out-of-competition test in June 2021.
Her suspension came while competing at the Tokyo Olympics and was announced in February 2022. It was later extended by an additional year in June 2022 due to further breaches.
Divine Oduduru (February 2029)
Oduduru’s career was derailed by anti-doping violations linked to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. On October 12 2023, a Disciplinary Tribunal of the AIU imposed a six-year ban on Oduduru after he was found guilty of possessing and attempting to use prohibited substances and methods. The case stemmed from the wider investigation into Eric Lira, the first individual convicted under the US Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act, who supplied banned substances to athletes, including Okagbare, ahead of the Tokyo Games.
Oduduru’s ban is effective from February 9, 2023 and will run until February 8, 2029.
Henry Azike (Lifetime ban)
Azike is one of two Nigerian athletes currently serving a lifetime ban after testing positive for Metenolone, an anabolic steroid. His case was classified as a second ADRV, automatically triggering a lifetime suspension from the sport.
Azike last competed in 2011, including at the Doha Amir Cup and Nigerian Championships in Calabar.
Vivian Chukwuemeka (Lifetime ban)
Two-time Olympian and African shot put record holder Vivian Chukwuemeka is serving a lifetime ban for a second doping offence after testing positive for Stanozolol at the 2012 National Championships in Calabar.
The 2002 Commonwealth Games champion and multiple-time African gold medallist had previously served a two-year ban following a 2009 positive test. Her personal best of 18.43m remains the African record in women’s shot put.
Invited players into the Super Eagles B camp ahead of the rescheduled African Nations Championship tournament are feeling the pressure of selection, three days into their training camp at the Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne, Ogun State.
The eighth CHAN tournament is taking place in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda between August 2 to 20.
Ahead of the tournament, head coach Eric Chelle had invited an initial 35 players to camp and they began training on Monday with 21 players.
Five more players arrived on Tuesday to take the number to 26 while 28 players trained on Wednesday morning with the rest expected before the end of the week.
Captain of the team through the qualifiers, Junior Nduka, spoke about the intensity of the sessions and the jostle to make the final squad.
“Everybody is under pressure but definitely the coaches want the best among the 35 players,” Nduka said.
River United and former Flying Eagles forward, Aniekeme Okon, also admitted the pressure.
“It puts pressure on us, 35 players being invited, everybody is going to give out their best with an expectation of being selected. So we keep pushing.”
Ikorodu City defender, Leonard Ngenge also said, “Obviously, it puts everyone under pressure even myself. But I just need to do my best to be on the coaches’ radar.”
Nigeria, the 2018 runners-up, are in group D of the 19-team tournament, alongside Cup holders Senegal, Sudan and Congo.
The Super Eagles B will play their first two matches of the competition, against Senegal and Sudan, at the Amman Stadium on the island of Zanzibar, before taking on Congo at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam.
Nigeria has never won the tournament, having finished third at the 2014 edition in South Africa before losing the final against hosts Morocco four years later.
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