The president of "CAF" praises the successes of the continent's national teams in the 2026 World Cup.

Patrice Motsepe, the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), confirmed today, Sunday, that hard work and investment in youth, training, and infrastructure have paid off in the 2026 World Cup.

Nine out of ten African teams have qualified for the knockout stages of the expanded tournament, which includes 48 teams and is being held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

The teams from Morocco, Algeria, Cape Verde, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Senegal, and South Africa will participate in the Round of 32; while Tunisia was eliminated after losing all its matches.

Motsepe stated that "hard work and investment in youth football, training, professional tournaments, and infrastructure across all 54 member associations of the African Football Confederation" are all qualifications that "are bearing fruit."

The CAF president added: "I congratulate the presidents of the nine member associations and their executive committees, and I thank the African governments for their cooperation and support."

The same official confirmed that "the best practices in governance, transparency, financial oversight, and accounting that have been implemented have attracted new sponsors and partners, contributing to the development and growth of African football."

The South African continued: "CAF wishes all the best to the nine national teams, and we are confident that they will continue to raise the name of their countries and Africa high."

Africa achieved a success rate of 90 percent in qualifying for the second round, the highest percentage among the six continental regions under FIFA.

South America came in second with a rate of 83.33 percent, and Europe in third with a rate of 81.25 percent.