7 African Legends Who Guided their Countries to 2026 World Cup as Coaches

Following the conclusion of World Cup qualifiers, nine African teams have booked their places in next year’s tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

That completes the set, although one more African side can secure their ticket if they win the intercontinental playoffs, set to begin in November.

Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Algeria, Cape Verde, Ghana, South Africa, Ivory Coast and Senegal are the nine qualified teams from Africa.

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Out of the nine, seven were led by former players, some who have been to the World Cup, but now doing well as coaches.

Morocco coach Walid Regraui will return to the World Cup after guiding the Atlas Lions to the 2026 tournament with qualification secured early in September.

Regargui is the man who made history with Morocco in 2022, guiding them to the semi-final of that year’s World Cup in Qatar, a first for an African nation, and he will be hoping to do the same, or better, after qualifying as the top team in Group E, having won all their eight matches.

The former Morocco right-back, who made 44 appearances for the Atlas Lions, was appointed in August 2022.

Legendary Egyptian forward Hossam Hassan was appointed head coach of the Pharaohs in February 2024, replacing Portuguese Rui Vitoria and he has done impressively.

Hassan, a former Egyptian international and the country's all-time top scorer, masterminded Egypt’s return to the World Cup, a tournament they last played in 2018, after topping Group A following eight wins and two draws.

Pape Thiaw had big shoes to fill when he replaced long-serving Aliou Cisse as Senegal coach in December 2024 but performed exceptionally well.

A former Senegalese international forward, Thiaw took over from Cisse and signed a two-year renewable contract with objectives of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and reaching the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals.

He has already ticked one box after seeing the Teranga Lions make it three successive World Cup qualifications after topping Group B, thanks to seven wins and three draws.

Former Tunisia centre-back Sami Trabelsi is the man who completed the job having come in midway through the World Cup qualification process.

Trabelsi was appointed head coach in February 2025 for his second tenure, having previously led the team from 2011 to 2013. He replaced Faouzi Benzarti, who was dismissed in October 2024.

Tunisia won nine and drew one of their 10 Group H matches, without conceding a goal, with 1998 World Cup star Trabelsi making them tough to beat.

Ivory Coast coach Emerse Fae got the national team job by chance in January 2024 and he made the best of it.

Fae had been assistant to Frenchman Jean-Louis Gasset but was appointed on temporary basis after the Ivorians sneaked into the Round of 16 of AFCON 2023 which they were hosting.

He masterminded their surprise run to the title, earning the job permanently in February 2024, and has continued to impress, returning Ivory Coast to the World Cup since 2014, having topped Group F with 26 points, one more than Gabon.

Fae is a former Ivorian midfielder who was part of the squad that played at the 2006 World Cup.

A love-hate relationship with fans that ended with the coach having the last laugh, former Ghana midfielder Otto Addo received a lot of flack from recent failings, especially after a failure to qualify for AFCON 2025.

However, Addo did what few expected him to, as he ensured the Black Stars will be at the 2026 World Cup, having been their coach when they played the 2022 edition.

Addo, who played at the 2006 World Cup, was reappointed in March 2024 and unlike in the AFCON qualifiers, there was no guessing or calculators needed this time, as Ghana qualified for the World Cup as leaders of Group I with 25 points, six more than second-placed Madagascar.

Former Cape Verde captain Pedro Leitao Brito is the man who pulled off a miracle as he led them to the World Cup for the first time in their history.

A tiny island nation of just around 600,000 people, Cape Verde stunned seasoned giants Cameroon by finishing ahead of them in Group D to seal a historic World Cup ticket.