Football Reflects Africa's Challenges

I find the tribalism among football fans today very disturbing. The silly banter between supporters of rival clubs would not last in any other competitive setting. It is no wonder this rivalry does not lead to more violence on match days. Ironically, this division helps football make money.

The irony goes deeper. About 70 percent of player fees in the English Premier League comes from TV rights. A big part of this money comes from outside the UK. This means football fans pay the salaries of players in the EPL, especially in Africa through MultiChoice. In other words, all the players in the EPL work for couch potatoes and armchair football experts.

So why would a fan (an employer) get so angry when one player does not perform well on a bad weekend? After all, there are many players to watch every weekend during the football season. Personally, I prefer good football, no matter which team is playing.

Every four years, this idea changes. The World Cup is one of the biggest cultural and sporting events worldwide. It is more than just a tournament. Brazil’s global influence comes largely from how well its players play football. It is not surprising that part of the FIFA World Cup’s charm is its representation of national pride. Rinus Michels’ idea of “Total Football” was just as important as Germany’s use of advanced data tools to improve team strategies during the 2014 World Cup.

From my couch, Nigeria’s failure to qualify for this year's World Cup brought Africa’s situation into focus. Did it matter that Africa had ten teams in this year’s finals, second only to Europe’s 16? Yes. How important was Cape Verde’s surprising performance for how Africa is viewed? For Cape Verde and many parts of Africa, it was thrilling.

But we have seen this before. The “Disgrace of Gijón” is one example. West Germany and Austria worked together in their last group match on June 25, 1982, to knock Algeria out by goal difference. This led to a rule change that now requires all final group matches to be played at the same time. Cameroon’s 1990 World Cup run, where they lost 3-2 to England in the quarter-finals, is still seen as one of Africa’s top performances in the World Cup.

Beyond the underdog successes, the 2026 FIFA World Cup has a more interesting and subtle meaning. The Williams, Brobbey, and Doué siblings represent this meaning. Two siblings. Two countries. Ethos? As shared as it gets. Same parents. Same neighborhood. Same school. Same football academy. Same league, though they play for different clubs. Should there be a big difference in results if one plays for a European team and the other for an African team?

Yes, based on the outcomes of Senegal versus Belgium and Egypt versus Argentina. In a way, both games remind me of the Group B men’s football match between Nigeria and Brazil at the 1968 Olympics. In Puebla, Mexico, Kenneth Olayombo and Peter Anieke helped Nigeria lead Brazil 3-0 at halftime. The match ended in a draw. A funny commentator said the Nigerians got to the dressing room, remembered they were up against Brazil, and fell apart in the second half. Senegal and Egypt seemed to follow the same pattern in the 2026 World Cup.

Why did this happen? I thought it was a lack of discipline. Both teams needed to keep their structure and teamwork for ninety minutes to win. I have been told it was a matter of mentality. Neither team could stay focused for the entire match. Their opponents found it much easier to do so.

A few years ago, poor facilities were a problem for African teams at the World Cup. Today, with European players on both sides of the Africa versus the world divide, that excuse doesn’t hold up. Discipline and mentality, though? That is a different issue. What is it about African flags that takes away the discipline from European players?