Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has applauded the impressive performance of African teams at the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup, expressing hope that Nigeria’s Super Eagles will secure qualification for the next edition of the global tournament.
The former Nigerian Finance Minister shared her thoughts in a post on her official X (formerly Twitter) account, where she praised the continent’s representatives for making Africa proud on football’s biggest stage.
“So proud of the performance of the African teams at the World Cup! Morocco and Egypt have made it through so far, but Cabo Verde was a standout,” she wrote.
She also commended other African nations that participated in the competition despite falling short of advancing further.
“DRC, Côte d’Ivoire, and Ghana also battled. Thanks to all for making us proud. Keeping fingers crossed on further progress! Would be exciting if Nigeria makes it through to the next World Cup,” Okonjo-Iweala added.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup, jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, is the first edition to feature an expanded 48-team format, allowing a record 10 African nations to qualify for the tournament.
The continent also made history with nine African teams progressing to the Round of 32, marking one of Africa’s strongest performances at a FIFA World Cup.
Following the knockout-stage fixtures, only Morocco and Egypt secured places in the Round of 16.
Morocco’s Atlas Lions continued their impressive campaign by defeating Australia to reach the quarter-finals, while Egypt remains in contention as it prepares to face reigning world champions Argentina in the Round of 16.
Nigeria, however, failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup after losing to the Democratic Republic of Congo in the final of the African Play-Off Tournament last year.
The Super Eagles had earlier missed out on an automatic qualification ticket after South Africa finished top of their qualifying group.