Sports
2026 FIFA World Cup: Alex Iwobi praises African teams after historic group stage progress
Iwobi couldn’t pick a favourite and honestly, after the tournament Africa just had, who could blame him?
Nigeria’s Alex Iwobi had questions thrown at him from every angle during his 15-minute Threads Q&A, with Pulse Sports fully active on Sunday.
But when it came to naming his standout performers at this World Cup, the Super Eagles playmaker decided nobody from Africa was missing out on the credit.
Asked who had impressed him most at the 2026 World Cup, Iwobi, who also gave his verdict on the France vs Spain semi-final earlier in the session, kept it simple, generous, and thoroughly diplomatic.
‘Impressed by all the African teams that made it out of group stages,’ he said.
Honestly? Fair enough. Because this wasn’t just a good World Cup for African football, it was an absolute party.
Alex Iwobi | Instagram
AFRICA SHOWED UP AND SHOWED OUT
With 10 African nations qualifying for the first time in history, there were plenty of reasons to expect the continent might get overwhelmed on the big stage.
Instead, they did the exact opposite. CAF delivered a stunning 90% group-stage success rate, the best of any confederation at the entire tournament, with nine of the ten African representatives dancing their way into the newly introduced Round of 32.
Morocco were the undisputed headline act. Building on their legendary 2022 semi-final run, the Atlas Lions strolled through a group containing Brazil and Scotland unbeaten, knocking out the Netherlands on penalties.
The Atlas Lions also brushed Canada aside 3-0 and became the first African nation ever to reach two World Cup quarter-finals before France finally brought the party to a halt, 2-0.
Egypt, and Zico celebrate their second goal!
Egypt gave Argentina a genuine fright in the Round of 16, going toe-to-toe with the defending champions in a battle that ended in heartbreak and heavy frustration over controversial late refereeing calls.
And then there were Cabo Verde, the tournament’s feel-good underdog story, who matched Messi’s Argentina blow-for-blow before bowing out, and still returned home to Praia as conquering heroes.
Cape Verde’s 40-year-old shot-stopper Vozinha is the oldest goalkeeper ever to keep a clean sheet on his World Cup debut.
It wasn’t all fairytale endings, though. The Round of 32 delivered some brutal late heartbreak for the continent.
Senegal somehow surrendered a 2-0 lead against Belgium in the final five minutes to lose 3-2. DR Congo led England for long spells before a late Harry Kane brace broke hearts.
And Ivory Coast conceded a sucker-punch with three minutes left to go down 2-1 to Norway.
Painful stuff, sure, but even in defeat, those were the kind of nail-biting, deep-into-stoppage-time collapses that only happen when you’re genuinely competing, not making up the numbers.
Add it all up, and it’s easy to see why Iwobi simply couldn’t pick just one team to praise.
This World Cup was widely hailed as a landmark moment for African football, proof the continent has arrived, not as underdogs to be patronised, but as genuine contenders capable of ruffling the biggest feathers in the game.
Impressed by all of them? At this rate, so is everyone else.
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