Brazilian legend Pele famously predicted an African team would win the World Cup before the turn of the century, but his prophecy failed to come to fruition.
Quarter-final appearances for Cameroon (1990), Senegal (2002) and Ghana (2010) are the best the continent has managed and it is tough to see the drought ending this year.
The imbalance in the number of slots awarded to Africa for the World Cup in comparison to other continents certainly does not help their cause.
Just five African teams will feature at Qatar 2022 – Senegal, Cameroon, Ghana, Morocco and Tunisia – while Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Egypt are amongst the teams to miss out.
South Africa and Algeria are other nations who will not feature at the World Cup, further highlighting how difficult it is for African teams to qualify for the tournament.
Read on as we take a look at the five teams that have booked their place at the World Cup and assess their chances of making an impact.
Senegal
The World Cup draw for the group stage has been relatively kind to Senegal and they have a great chance of progressing to the knockout phase.
Netherlands are favourites to win Group A, but Senegal will fancy their chances of finishing in the top two ahead of Ecuador and Qatar.
The 2021 Africa Cup of Nations champions have plenty of talent at their disposal and a run to the quarter-finals should not be beyond them
Cameroon
Cameroon fans will be clamouring to find reliable soccer streaming sites to watch their team’s games in one of the most competitive groups at the World Cup.
Brazil are favourites to win the tournament for the sixth time, while Serbia and Switzerland will be extremely tough opponents.
Cameroon have made plenty of headlines at previous World Cups, but it would be a major surprise if they make it through to the round of 16.
Ghana
Ghana are historically one of the strongest teams in Africa and will fancy their chances of making their mark at the upcoming World Cup.
They have landed in a difficult group alongside Portugal, Uruguay and South Korea, but their talented squad have the potential to cause an upset.
While their recent results have been mixed, Ghana can be expected to step things up in Qatar and could surprise a few people at the World Cup.
Morocco
Belgium are strongly fancied to win Group F, but Morocco will believe they can shock Croatia and Canada by claiming second place.
That may be easier said than done, with 2018 runners-up Croatia possessing the know-how to go a long way at this tournament.
Achraf Hakimi, Hakim Ziyech and Youssef En-Nesyri give Morocco a sprinkling of quality, but it is tough to see them getting out of the group.
Tunisia
Tunisia are another team that look set for an early exit as they have landed in Group D alongside France, Denmark and Australia.
France are amongst the favourites to win the trophy, while Denmark and Australia may both have too much quality for Tunisia.
The Carthage Eagles have never made it out of the group stage in six previous attempts – it is highly likely that miserable run will continue in Qatar.
Prediction
Senegal look best placed of the African teams to make it through to the knockout stage as they are expected to progress alongside Netherlands.
A potential round of 16 meeting with the winners of Group B (England, United States, Iran or Wales) would hold no fears for a Senegal that is full of confidence.
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