Sports
Africa’s Strongest, Weakest Points In World Cup Participation
If South Africans had wanted an omen in the run-up to yesterday’s opening clash against Mexico, they can take heart from the most tenuous of facts – that every time an African team has contested the World Cup opener, they have not only won it, but also made it to the quarter-finals.
Cameroon in 1990 and Senegal in 2002 are the two major highlights of Africa’s World Cup adventure, but what about the rest?
And what about the lowlights? Here are some of African highs and lows in the Mundial.
TOP 10 HIGHS:
The 1966 boycott: One of the highs was, at the time, a considerable low. With Africa awarded half a place at the World Cup by an intractable FIFA, the continent boycotted the 1966 finals. The drastic protest worked as Africa received its own berth for 1970.
Tunisia 1978: Nearly 50 years after Africa first participated in the World Cup, the continent recorded its first victory as Tunisia beat Mexico 3-1 in Rosario (although the Carthage Eagles haven’t won at the World Cup since).
Algeria 1982: Shocks had already rocked the World Cup but no one expected first-timers Algeria to beat the European champions.
Rabah Madjer opened the scoring, West German captain Karl-Heinz Rummenigge levelled, leaving it to the great Lakdar Belloumi to seal a late victory. “Germany had very good players but we also had a great team, with lots of experience and talent,” says Madjer.
Morocco 1986: The Atlas Lions continued North Africa’s pioneering World Cup role when becoming the first Africans into the second round. “Nobody could believe what we’d done because we were taking on Poland, England and Portugal,” says goalkeeper Badu Zaki, whose team topped the group unbeaten. “I think our performances persuaded FIFA that Africa deserved more places at the World Cup.”
Cameroon 1990: The Indomitable Lions’ Italian adventure is Africa’s proudest World Cup memory – headlined by Roger Milla’s goals and wiggling hips. Sub-Saharan Africa announced it could be a football power when Francois Omam-Biyik’s prodigious leap sunk defending champions Argentina 1-0.
Wins over Romania and Colombia followed and in the quarters, Thomas N’Kono, Cyrille Makanaky and co. were just seven minutes away from beating England. No African side has ever been so close to the semi-finals.
Roger Milla: Milla made his mark in 1990 but furthered a personal milestone when netting against Russia at USA ’94. The forward had reset the oldest goalscorer mark at 42 years – a World Cup record that will surely never be broken.
Nigeria 1994: Packing power and flair, the Super Eagles routed Bulgaria 3-0 – Rashidi Yekini pumping his fists through the net in celebration – while Daniel Amokachi netted a screamer against Greece.
Nigeria were then two minutes from the quarter-finals until ten-man Italy equalised. “It’s a shame we didn’t realise how good we were, as we lacked experience,” says Jay-Jay Okocha. “But 1994 helped us win the 1996 Olympics.”
Nigeria 1998: The Super Eagles are the only African side to twice reach the knock-outs. The highlight here was the 3-2 win over Spain, lit up by Sunday Oliseh’s sweet 25-yard half-volley. Okocha was also in sublime form, dazzling with his tricks and flicks.
Senegal 2002: Lightning struck twice as an unfancied African side defeated the reigning champions 1-0 in the opening game – Senegal’s humbling of former colonialists France inspired by El Hadji Diouf’s thrilling display.
Draws with Denmark and Uruguay, and a knock-out defeat of Sweden, took the Teranga Lions into the quarters, where they lost to Turkey. “The only game we prepared for like people wanted us to – having lunch, staying in your room, looking at the ceiling etc. – was the one we lost because mentally we’d already played the game,” laments midfielder Salif Diao.
FIFA’s Rotation Policy: 15 March 2001 was one of African football’s most momentous days for FIFA, who had decided to rotate the World Cup the year before, chose the continent to start the new system in 2010. Of course, 15 May 2004 is more celebrated in South Africa as that was the day the World Cup hosts won the bid.
THE LOWS:
Zaire 74: This display was a disaster as the African champions played three and lost three (scoring 0, conceding 14). In addition, Mwepu Ilunga showed scant regard for the rules when kicking away an opponents’ free-kick. He’s since claimed he was trying to get sent off in protest at the federation withholding money from the squad. “I knew the rules very well but the referee was lenient and only gave me a yellow.”
Togo 2006: Bonuses have been the bugbear of many African campaigns but the Hawks took things to a new level when becoming the first team to threaten to boycott a World Cup match.
With the FA refusing to pay the agreed amount, the players were set to sit out the Switzerland tie until FIFA guaranteed them funds. Later on, FIFA fined the Togolese FA for behaviour ‘unworthy of a World Cup participant’.
The ‘Shame of Gijon’, Spain 1982: This setback denied Algeria an historic place in the second round. Since they’d already played, group rivals West Germany and Austria knew a narrow German win in their contest would take both sides through.
After the Germans’ early goal, both sides made little attempt to score – sparking public outcry and FIFA to ensure that all final group ties were played simultaneously from then on. “We were tricked out of qualification but the anger has gone now,” says Madjer.
The Big-Name Absences: Africans decry the failure of Liberia’s George Weah, Ghana’s Abedi Pele and Mali’s Salif Keita. On this occasion, many fans were also dismayed by the absence of a team, six-time African champions Egypt, meaning Ahmed Hassan and Mohamed Aboutreika would be sorely missed.
The Quarter-Final Barrier: Despite winning the U17 World Cup, the U20 World Cup and the Olympic Games, Africa has never won the World Cup – nor reached the last four. Can the continent’s first World Cup rewrite history?
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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