Nine African countries reached the knockout stage of the 2026 World Cup. Africa’s teams set a record with 9 of 10 African sides advancing to the Round of 32, while Tunisia was the only African team that did not get through.

Who advanced

  • Morocco
  • South Africa
  • Senegal
  • Ivory Coast
  • Ghana
  • Cape Verde
  • Egypt
  • DR Congo
  • Algeria

What it means

This is Africa’s best-ever World Cup group-stage showing, surpassing the previous record of two teams making the knockouts in a single edition. It also reflects how the expanded tournament format has opened more spots for African nations.

Would you like the list of African teams that qualified in earlier World Cups too?