Which African country can WIN the FIFA World Cup?

[bret- hart]

One of the more organized African nations that strikes luck with a generation of great talent.

Morocco or Algeria.

Morocco and Algeria have average players and nobody will underestimate Morocco like in 2022.

[mate]

I love African football and wish one could win the WC. Gotta be honest, right now I don't see a realistic chance. The main factor for me is one I use to rate any country: do you have good leagues that can develop and compete at the club level?

I was inspired by Morocco last WC. Great discipline, fitness, skill, and enough very good players...imagine they had Mo Salah? Just need the pieces to make a final run where anything is possible.

[TonyTheTigerKiller]

I love African football and wish one could win the WC. Gotta be honest, right now I don't see a realistic chance. The main factor for me is one I use to rate any country: do you have good leagues that can develop and compete at the club level?

I was inspired by Morocco last WC. Great discipline, fitness, skill, and enough very good players...imagine they had Mo Salah? Just need the pieces to make a final run where anything is possible.

You are beginning to sound like Jamie Carragher. Wether or not we have good leagues is besides the point. The majority of our national team players play in the best leagues in the world. There’s absolutely no reason why we can’t raise a team capable of winning the World Cup


Cheers.

[camex]

Morocco. They have talents like Brahim Diaz and Ashra Hakimi who play for the best teams in the world. Which other african country has that?

Ghana currently have the best TALENTs in Africa

How many ghanaians play in the champions league?

[mate]

I love African football and wish one could win the WC. Gotta be honest, right now I don't see a realistic chance. The main factor for me is one I use to rate any country: do you have good leagues that can develop and compete at the club level?

I was inspired by Morocco last WC. Great discipline, fitness, skill, and enough very good players...imagine they had Mo Salah? Just need the pieces to make a final run where anything is possible.

You are beginning to sound like Jamie Carragher. Wether or not we have good leagues is besides the point. The majority of our national team players play in the best leagues in the world. There’s absolutely no reason why we can’t raise a team capable of winning the World Cup


Cheers.

But that's the thing: how many African nations actually have enough top players at top clubs to form the nucleus of a good NT? I don't see how you can without having good leagues as a foundation. Most glaring example: my team Croatia.

We don't just pipeline Gvardiol, Sutalo, Petar Sucic, Luka Sucic, Josip Stanisic, Luka Vuskovic, Gabriel Vidovic, Martin Baturina, and Lovro Zvonarek in a vacuum. All young players either in top clubs or going there. For a nation of 4M.

It is all on the foundation of an actually decent Croatian league. Dani Olmo of Spain choose Dinamo Zagreb over all Spanish clubs. Dinamo and Hajduk have one of the best youth systems in the world...where you will get guaranteed playing time in the 1st club roster.

I read a report where there are more Croatian players getting 1st division playing time than Americans or English. The latter compete with foreigners. Croatia has an optimal mix of foreigners. Being selective about true talent, to augment our domestic development...Gvardiol and Olmo are great friends and professionally collaborate. They both went together from Dinamo to Leipzig in the Bundesliga.

A bunch of us Cybereagles discussed this on other threads. Sometimes bringing up Nigeria for contrast. If I could summarize: raw talent brings you occasional surges of relative success...but a good league with a good FA with a good youth system brings sustained success.

Not to overdo Croatia...but we just took France, perhaps with Argentina the strongest team in the world, to PKs in the Nations League. In the last 6 games since WC 2018, Croatia is 2 wins 2 losses and 2 ties vs France.

I think the lessons are clear.

[TonyTheTigerKiller]

I love African football and wish one could win the WC. Gotta be honest, right now I don't see a realistic chance. The main factor for me is one I use to rate any country: do you have good leagues that can develop and compete at the club level?

I was inspired by Morocco last WC. Great discipline, fitness, skill, and enough very good players...imagine they had Mo Salah? Just need the pieces to make a final run where anything is possible.

You are beginning to sound like Jamie Carragher. Wether or not we have good leagues is besides the point. The majority of our national team players play in the best leagues in the world. There’s absolutely no reason why we can’t raise a team capable of winning the World Cup


Cheers.

But that's the thing: how many African nations actually have enough top players at top clubs to form the nucleus of a good NT? I don't see how you can without having good leagues as a foundation. Most glaring example: my team Croatia.

We don't just pipeline Gvardiol, Sutalo, Petar Sucic, Luka Sucic, Josip Stanisic, Luka Vuskovic, Gabriel Vidovic, Martin Baturina, and Lovro Zvonarek in a vacuum. All young players either in top clubs or going there. For a nation of 4M.

It is all on the foundation of an actually decent Croatian league. Dani Olmo of Spain choose Dinamo Zagreb over all Spanish clubs. Dinamo and Hajduk have one of the best youth systems in the world...where you will get guaranteed playing time in the 1st club roster.

I read a report where there are more Croatian players getting 1st division playing time than Americans or English. The latter compete with foreigners. Croatia has an optimal mix of foreigners. Being selective about true talent, to augment our domestic development...Gvardiol and Olmo are great friends and professionally collaborate. They both went together from Dinamo to Leipzig in the Bundesliga.

A bunch of us Cybereagles discussed this on other threads. Sometimes bringing up Nigeria for contrast. If I could summarize: raw talent brings you occasional surges of relative success...but a good league with a good FA with a good youth system brings sustained success.

Not to overdo Croatia...but we just took France, perhaps with Argentina the strongest team in the world, to PKs in the Nations League. In the last 6 games since WC 2018, Croatia is 2 wins 2 losses and 2 ties vs France.

I think the lessons are clear.

There are actually more than a handful of African teams that do have enough top players to form good national teams; Nigeria, Senegal, Morocco, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Ghana and even Egypt. For that matter, how many European teams are capable of winning the World Cup? Just the very few usual suspects. For a continent that has consistently had the lion’s share of World Cup spots, precious few countries have seen the promised land. You keep on harping about Croatia. Yes they’ve done rather well but they really haven’t won anything. A handful of African countries too have recorded victories over the world’s top teams. You can pretend all you want not to know that there are numerous impediments to more African players featuring in the big leagues that have very little to do with ability, one of those being neo colonialism. Many players of African descent find themselves representing countries that are actually alien to them because of the decision of their parents to migrate.

Sure, a good league could certainly improve the prospects of stable national teams but many European countries with good leagues aren’t going to win the World Cup anytime soon. I get irritated with this never ending stereotyping of African football and footballers, in the guise of honest, logical arguments. Don’t pretend it is anything other than being blatantly disrespectful, which it absolutely is


Cheers.

[Rawlings]

Morocco. They have talents like Brahim Diaz and Ashra Hakimi who play for the best teams in the world. Which other african country has that?

Ghana currently have the best TALENTs in Africa

How many ghanaians play in the champions league?

Do u mean from the start or those who are still in there?

[camex]

Morocco. They have talents like Brahim Diaz and Ashra Hakimi who play for the best teams in the world. Which other african country has that?

Ghana currently have the best TALENTs in Africa

How many ghanaians play in the champions league?

Do u mean from the start or those who are still in there?

I meant still there. Morocco has at least two Hakimi and Diaz. But since we are at it. What were also the number at the beginning?

[mate]

I love African football and wish one could win the WC. Gotta be honest, right now I don't see a realistic chance. The main factor for me is one I use to rate any country: do you have good leagues that can develop and compete at the club level?

I was inspired by Morocco last WC. Great discipline, fitness, skill, and enough very good players...imagine they had Mo Salah? Just need the pieces to make a final run where anything is possible.

You are beginning to sound like Jamie Carragher. Wether or not we have good leagues is besides the point. The majority of our national team players play in the best leagues in the world. There’s absolutely no reason why we can’t raise a team capable of winning the World Cup


Cheers.

But that's the thing: how many African nations actually have enough top players at top clubs to form the nucleus of a good NT? I don't see how you can without having good leagues as a foundation. Most glaring example: my team Croatia.

We don't just pipeline Gvardiol, Sutalo, Petar Sucic, Luka Sucic, Josip Stanisic, Luka Vuskovic, Gabriel Vidovic, Martin Baturina, and Lovro Zvonarek in a vacuum. All young players either in top clubs or going there. For a nation of 4M.

It is all on the foundation of an actually decent Croatian league. Dani Olmo of Spain choose Dinamo Zagreb over all Spanish clubs. Dinamo and Hajduk have one of the best youth systems in the world...where you will get guaranteed playing time in the 1st club roster.

I read a report where there are more Croatian players getting 1st division playing time than Americans or English. The latter compete with foreigners. Croatia has an optimal mix of foreigners. Being selective about true talent, to augment our domestic development...Gvardiol and Olmo are great friends and professionally collaborate. They both went together from Dinamo to Leipzig in the Bundesliga.

A bunch of us Cybereagles discussed this on other threads. Sometimes bringing up Nigeria for contrast. If I could summarize: raw talent brings you occasional surges of relative success...but a good league with a good FA with a good youth system brings sustained success.

Not to overdo Croatia...but we just took France, perhaps with Argentina the strongest team in the world, to PKs in the Nations League. In the last 6 games since WC 2018, Croatia is 2 wins 2 losses and 2 ties vs France.

I think the lessons are clear.

There are actually more than a handful of African teams that do have enough top players to form good national teams; Nigeria, Senegal, Morocco, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Ghana and even Egypt. For that matter, how many European teams are capable of winning the World Cup? Just the very few usual suspects. For a continent that has consistently had the lion’s share of World Cup spots, precious few countries have seen the promised land. You keep on harping about Croatia. Yes they’ve done rather well but they really haven’t won anything. A handful of African countries too have recorded victories over the world’s top teams. You can pretend all you want not to know that there are numerous impediments to more African players featuring in the big leagues that have very little to do with ability, one of those being neo colonialism. Many players of African descent find themselves representing countries that are actually alien to them because of the decision of their parents to migrate.

Sure, a good league could certainly improve the prospects of stable national teams but many European countries with good leagues aren’t going to win the World Cup anytime soon. I get irritated with this never ending stereotyping of African football and footballers, in the guise of honest, logical arguments. Don’t pretend it is anything other than being blatantly disrespectful, which it absolutely is


Cheers.

Croatia won 3rd place in 1998. Gave France and Zidane a much tougher time than Brazil. Croatia was 2nd in WC 2018. 3rd in WC 2022. NL finalist in 2024. Just took France to the brink in 2025 NL.

These are not just outliers. I explained the consistency. Neo colonialism? Feigned logic masking disrespect? Really? By suggesting a good league?



Ok with me. You can make it something other than what I wrote. But note I also made this basis of comparison with the USA and England. I don't believe it is any different for any national team, including African teams.

As always, we can respectfully agree to disagree.

[TonyTheTigerKiller]

Croatia won 3rd place in 1998. Gave France and Zidane a much tougher time than Brazil. Croatia was 2nd in WC 2018. 3rd in WC 2022. NL finalist in 2024. Just took France to the brink in 2025 NL.

These are not just outliers. I explained the consistency. Neo colonialism? Feigned logic masking disrespect? Really? By suggesting a good league?



Ok with me. You can make it something other than what I wrote. But note I also made this basis of comparison with the USA and England. I don't believe it is any different for any national team, including African teams.

As always, we can respectfully agree to disagree.

There you go again with Croatia this and Croatia that. They’ve got good organization no doubt but how have Croatian clubs fared in UEFA competitions? Where is the evidence of this great league you talked about? Croatia has done well in the World Cup because she has good players in the top European leagues… but so do African countries. With a little better organization, African teams can do just as well in the World Cup despite not having great leagues. Morocco proved exactly that in the last World Cup.

Come back and talk to me when Croatia does anything besides being an also ran


Cheers.

[Rawlings]

Morocco. They have talents like Brahim Diaz and Ashra Hakimi who play for the best teams in the world. Which other african country has that?

Ghana currently have the best TALENTs in Africa

How many ghanaians play in the champions league?

Do u mean from the start or those who are still in there?

I meant still there. Morocco has at least two Hakimi and Diaz. But since we are at it. What were also the number at the beginning?

• Thomas Partey (Arsenal)
  Aziz Issah (Barcelona) -https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football ... aziz-issah
  David Oduro (Barcelona) - https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football ... avid-oduro

[camex]

Morocco. They have talents like Brahim Diaz and Ashra Hakimi who play for the best teams in the world. Which other african country has that?

Ghana currently have the best TALENTs in Africa

How many ghanaians play in the champions league?

Do u mean from the start or those who are still in there?

I meant still there. Morocco has at least two Hakimi and Diaz. But since we are at it. What were also the number at the beginning?

• Thomas Partey (Arsenal)
  Aziz Issah (Barcelona) -https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football ... aziz-issah
  David Oduro (Barcelona) - https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football ... avid-oduro

And please players who are in the B team do not count. You including Oduto gives the impression that there is not much talent in Ghana

[Rawlings]

Morocco. They have talents like Brahim Diaz and Ashra Hakimi who play for the best teams in the world. Which other african country has that?

Ghana currently have the best TALENTs in Africa

How many ghanaians play in the champions league?

Do u mean from the start or those who are still in there?

I meant still there. Morocco has at least two Hakimi and Diaz. But since we are at it. What were also the number at the beginning?

• Thomas Partey (Arsenal)
  Aziz Issah (Barcelona) -https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football ... aziz-issah
  David Oduro (Barcelona) - https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football ... avid-oduro

And please players who are in the B team do not count. You including Oduto gives the impression that there is not much talent in Ghana

Oduro.jpg?width=1680&height=1050

[camex]

Ghana currently have the best TALENTs in Africa

How many ghanaians play in the champions league?

Do u mean from the start or those who are still in there?

I meant still there. Morocco has at least two Hakimi and Diaz. But since we are at it. What were also the number at the beginning?

• Thomas Partey (Arsenal)
  Aziz Issah (Barcelona) -https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football ... aziz-issah
  David Oduro (Barcelona) - https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football ... avid-oduro

And please players who are in the B team do not count. You including Oduto gives the impression that there is not much talent in Ghana

Oduro.jpg?width=1680&height=1050

Let if go. Morocco is miles ahead of you in terms of talent

[Rawlings]

Let if go. Morocco is miles ahead of you in terms of talent

They are not even close.
At the 2026 WC, our Barca players will be ready to complement the current players.
Ghana will win the world cup

[camex]

Let if go. Morocco is miles ahead of you in terms of talent

They are not even close.
At the 2026 WC, our Barca players will be ready to complement the current players.
Ghana will win the world cup

this is next year, but who knows the future? and Morocco has players also in Bayer Leverkusen, PSV. Ghana does not have the quality Morocco has.

[mate]

Croatia won 3rd place in 1998. Gave France and Zidane a much tougher time than Brazil. Croatia was 2nd in WC 2018. 3rd in WC 2022. NL finalist in 2024. Just took France to the brink in 2025 NL.

These are not just outliers. I explained the consistency. Neo colonialism? Feigned logic masking disrespect? Really? By suggesting a good league?



Ok with me. You can make it something other than what I wrote. But note I also made this basis of comparison with the USA and England. I don't believe it is any different for any national team, including African teams.

As always, we can respectfully agree to disagree.

There you go again with Croatia this and Croatia that. They’ve got good organization no doubt but how have Croatian clubs fared in UEFA competitions? Where is the evidence of this great league you talked about? Croatia has done well in the World Cup because she has good players in the top European leagues… but so do African countries. With a little better organization, African teams can do just as well in the World Cup despite not having great leagues. Morocco proved exactly that in the last World Cup.

Come back and talk to me when Croatia does anything besides being an also ran


Cheers.

You're missing the point. Development, especially based on playing time in the Croatian league, pipelines Croatian players to the best European clubs. I told your about Gvardiol and Olmo, from Croatia and Spain respectively...developed into world class players through this process.

It could not have happened without a decent Croatian league. You get CL experience. Sure, Dinamo and Hajduk don't win the CL, but it's great experience when you are an up and coming young player.

And by the way, it's a landing zone when Croatian players can't make it to a top team. They'd rather play in Croatia. Players like Orsic, Petkovic, and Livaja came from Dinamo and Hajduk to round the roster...Orisc and Petkovic teamed up to score the tying goal in the dying minutes vs Brazil. Afterwards we won on PKs.

I'm not an expert on Morocco. But I read a bit. Like this NYT article. Here are some snippets.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/598907 ... uperpower/

Scouting has improved in Morocco, as have the facilities that can be deployed to develop local talent, but many of these players, as well as head coach Walid Regragui (who was born in Paris, and still lives there), were ultimately a product of the European system.

Though it is not as competitive as Egypt in terms of the levels of salaries being offered to players, leading Moroccan clubs, with quality infrastructures behind them, have started to fill the prime places in Africa’s continental competitions: Casablanca’s Wydad lifted the CAF Champions League in 2017 and 2022 and their city rivals Raja won the CAF Confederation Cup in 2018 and 2021 (Africa’s version of the UEFA Europa League).

Last summer, it signed a deal with the football federation and private partners to create, according to a press release issued by OCP and the government, a “national training fund dedicated to the professionalisation of training centres and the promotion of young talent”.

Morocco aspires to create its own footballers and, ideally, pay them well enough to play for clubs at home, as many of Egypt’s top stars do, rather than moving abroad. Of the 16 fastest-growing economies in 2024, 16 are African and with Morocco placed at the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea, it is handily positioned to become a regional power in the same way as Egypt has due to its connection with the Suez Canal.

\

So I conclude:

1) Morocco rode a combination of factors to have an outlier WC run...like Turkey, South Korea, Japan, and Greece in various competitions.

2) Like these countries and Croatia, Morocco is RIGHTFULLY investing in leagues to sustain success...knowing you can do it by just having great players in Europe.

3) South America has plenty of players in Europe but have trouble winning a WC...and has been eclipsed by Europe because the locus of power has been in European club football.

Let me ask you: what African country has as many big players on big clubs as Croatia? Consider the Croatian midfield of the last 10 years: Raketic, Modric, Brozovic, Kovacic...repping Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Manchester City. Manzdukic our main forward was on Bayern Munich and Juventus. Dejan Lovern was at Liverpool.

That's what it takes to have even a shot. We do it consistently since 1998. But sure, to your point, we've not won a WC or Euro. It's hard...minimally taking great players at great clubs, coming from strong enough domestic leagues.

[Rawlings]

Let if go. Morocco is miles ahead of you in terms of talent

They are not even close.
At the 2026 WC, our Barca players will be ready to complement the current players.
Ghana will win the world cup

this is next year, but who knows the future? and Morocco has players also in Bayer Leverkusen, PSV. Ghana does not have the quality Morocco has.

Ghana has players in Atlanta (3rd in Serie A), 2x Barcelona, 1x Arsenal, 1x Celtic and 1xFeyenoord who are currently not making the Ghana Squad.
Ghana is blessed with talent.

[camex]

Let if go. Morocco is miles ahead of you in terms of talent

They are not even close.
At the 2026 WC, our Barca players will be ready to complement the current players.
Ghana will win the world cup

this is next year, but who knows the future? and Morocco has players also in Bayer Leverkusen, PSV. Ghana does not have the quality Morocco has.

Ghana has players in Atlanta (3rd in Serie A), 2x Barcelona, 1x Arsenal, 1x Celtic and 1xFeyenoord who are currently not making the Ghana Squad.
Ghana is blessed with talent.

Barcelona B and you want to be taken seriously.

[mate]

Let if go. Morocco is miles ahead of you in terms of talent

They are not even close.
At the 2026 WC, our Barca players will be ready to complement the current players.
Ghana will win the world cup

this is next year, but who knows the future? and Morocco has players also in Bayer Leverkusen, PSV. Ghana does not have the quality Morocco has.

Ghana has players in Atlanta (3rd in Serie A), 2x Barcelona, 1x Arsenal, 1x Celtic and 1xFeyenoord who are currently not making the Ghana Squad.
Ghana is blessed with talent.

I'd be interested to know the top Black Star players currently starting at major Power 5 clubs. This for me is the biggest indicator of potential. I posted earlier on how this applies to Croatia...explaining the pipeline is sourced from a decent Croatian league.

Countries like Uruguay have players spread across Europe. Again, same for Croatia. But neither win WCs, even if making decent runs. You need enough key players in all units: offense, midfield especially, defense, and a solid keeper...again, playing on good teams in those big roles.

[Rawlings]

Barcelona B and you want to be taken seriously.

One of them played in a couple of games for team A
In the 2025-26 season, before the WC, they will both be the mainstay for Barca

[Rawlings]

Let if go. Morocco is miles ahead of you in terms of talent

They are not even close.
At the 2026 WC, our Barca players will be ready to complement the current players.
Ghana will win the world cup

this is next year, but who knows the future? and Morocco has players also in Bayer Leverkusen, PSV. Ghana does not have the quality Morocco has.

Ghana has players in Atlanta (3rd in Serie A), 2x Barcelona, 1x Arsenal, 1x Celtic and 1xFeyenoord who are currently not making the Ghana Squad.
Ghana is blessed with talent.

I'd be interested to know the top Black Star players currently starting at major Power 5 clubs. This for me is the biggest indicator of potential. I posted earlier on how this applies to Croatia...explaining the pipeline is sourced from a decent Croatian league.

Countries like Uruguay have players spread across Europe. Again, same for Croatia. But neither win WCs, even if making decent runs. You need enough key players in all units: offense, midfield especially, defense, and a solid keeper...again, playing on good teams in those big roles.

I gave u a whole list. Do u want more?
I left players at Leicester, Southampton, Bournemouth, Fenerbache, Lyon, Monaco ...want more?

[camex]

Barcelona B and you want to be taken seriously.

One of them played in a couple of games for team A
In the 2025-26 season, before the WC, they will both be the mainstay for Barca

Team A for Barcelona? What position do they play? Because replacing Lamine Yamal l, Raphinia or Levandovskiis not an easy task