A number of African countries have featured in the FIFA World Cup tournament since Egypt’s maiden appearance in 1934.
Some of the countries have graced the global showpiece once while others have played in the tournament on multiple occasions.
TeamKenya.co.ke takes a look at the African teams that have made the most appearances in the competition.
Cameroon
Among the African countries, Cameroon has the most FIFA World Cup appearances. The West African nation has featured in the prestigious tournament on seven occasions.
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The Indomitable Lions made their debut at the 1982 edition held in Spain and are expected to make their 8th appearance later this year in Qatar.
Cameroon registered their best performance at the World Cup in 1990 when they surprised many to reach the quarter final stage.
Their hopes of proceeding to the semis were however dashed by England who narrowly defeated them 3-2 in a thrilling match which legendary player Roger Milla was on target.
In this year’s edition, Cameroon have been pooled in a tough group which also has former champions Brazil, Switzerland and Serbia.
Nigeria
Despite not qualifying for the 2022 edition, Nigeria has made six appearances at the FIFA World Cup.
Nigeria made their first appearance in the World Cup in 1994. They went on to grace the tournament in 1998, 2002, 2010, 2014 and 2018.
The Super Eagles narrowly missed this year’s edition after being beaten by rivals Ghana in the qualifiers. Their best performance so far is reaching the round of 16.
Tunisia
Tunisia boasts of five FIFA World Cup appearances. The Carthage Eagles as they are commonly known made their first appearance in 1978. They went on to play at the tournament in 1998, 2002, 2006 and 2018.
In the upcoming tournament, Tunisia will play title holders France, Australia and Denmark in Group D.
Morocco
Similar to Tunisia, Morocco has also made five appearances at the FIFA World Cup (1970, 1986, 1994, 1998, 2018) and are expected to feature for the sixth time later this year.
The Atlas Lions recently fired their Bosnian head coach Vahid Halilhodzic and appointed a former player to take charge of the team. In Qatar, they will play 2018 runners up Croatia, Belgium and under dogs Canada in the group stage.
Algeria
The former African champions have four World Cup appearances (1982, 1986, 2010 and 2014).
Algeria were denied a chance of featuring at the tournament for the fifth time by Cameroon who qualified thanks to the away goal rule.
The two legs of the final round ended 2-2, with Cameroon producing an amazing comeback to win the second leg 2-1.
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