FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, Arsene Wenger, will lead a group of coaches to talk about Africa’s impressive performance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. This discussion will happen at the CAF Strategy Conference in Cabo Verde next week.
The Confederation of African Football shared this news in a statement on its website on Friday. Wenger will be joined by coaches like Cabo Verde’s Bubista, Egypt’s Hossam Hassan, Morocco’s Mohamed Ouahbi, and Democratic Republic of Congo’s Sébastien Desabre.
CAF mentioned that the conference is set for October 7 to 9. Coaches from Africa’s 54 Member Associations, football legends, and other important people will gather to talk about how to improve African football.
The statement said Wenger’s panel will focus on the 2026 World Cup, where “Africa saw a record-breaking nine of its 10 participants advance to the Knockout Stages of the Competition.”
“FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development and former Arsenal mentor Arsene Wenger will join some of the Coaches who were behind the success of Africa’s National Teams at the FIFA World Cup 2026, including Cabo Verde’s Bubista, Egypt’s Hossam Hassan, and DR Congo’s Sébastien Desabre, in what is expected to be an insightful panel discussion at the CAF Strategy Conference next week,” CAF said.
The football body added that the conference will take place in Cabo Verde from October 7 to 9. It will “bring together Coaches from Africa’s 54 Member Associations, football legends and stakeholders under one roof discussing ways to advance football development in Africa.”
CAF TV will show several of the sessions, while other talks with coaches and technical officials will be private. “CAF TV will broadcast several of the sessions in Cabo Verde, while the remainder of the discussions between coaches and technicians will be behind closed doors,” the statement said.
“CAF will publish the times and programme of the events that will be beamed live in due course.” Wenger’s panel will include coaches whose teams did well at the 2026 World Cup.
CAF called Bubista, who led Cabo Verde at their first World Cup, “the man who led Cabo Verde’s heroics at the global finals,” adding that he had “since become a household name.”
“Back in his home country, he will be sharing insights behind his team’s performance at the tournament,” CAF said.
Ouahbi, on the other hand, took Morocco to the quarter-finals. CAF pointed out that he helped the Atlas Lions “again consolidate their reputation as one of the leading sides in the world.”
Hassan, the former Egypt striker who now coaches the national team, also played a big part in Africa’s World Cup journey. CAF stated that Hassan “led The Pharaohs to their first win at the FIFA World Cup and was instrumental in their run that included a nail-biting clash with Argentina, where they led by two goals until the final stages of the match.”
Desabre adds an important story to the talks too, after leading DR Congo back to the global tournament after 52 years. “Desabre coached the Democratic Republic of Congo, who made a return to the global stage after a 52-year absence, and guided them to the round of 32,” CAF said.
The conference will look at the experiences of the coaches and technical officials to learn from Africa’s 2026 World Cup campaign. They want to find ways to keep improving football on the continent.
CAF had earlier said the broader conference would focus on strengthening football development and sustainability across Africa. They will also analyze the performances of the continent’s 10 World Cup representatives ahead of the 2030 tournament.
The conference will take place in Cabo Verde, whose own World Cup journey was also a notable story from the 2026 tournament.
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