Yoane Wissa's goals helped DR Congo set up a last-32 date with England in Atlanta on Wednesday

🌐 Here's What Happened

The transformation of African football at the World Cup has been nothing short of meteoric.

At the 2018 World Cup in Russia, not one of Africa's five teams made it out of the group stage, recording just three wins out of a possible 15.

Fast forward to the 2026 World Cup and Africa will be held up as vindication of Gianni Infantino's expansion project.

📌 Key Details

Of the 10 African teams, all but one made it through the group stage.

Only Tunisia failed to progress, with Cape Verde, Egypt, ​Ivory Coast, Morocco and South Africa runners-up and Algeria, DR Congo, Ghana and Senegal through in third place.

It is a very different story for Asia, with only two of its nine countries getting out of the group stage.

For Africa it is cause for celebration, while Asia is left to reflect on failure.

Infantino's revamp of the World Cup had been rubber-stamped well before the 2018 World Cup.

So when Africa performed so poorly in Russia, justification for giving the continent another four places appeared to be weak.

📰 Source: BBC Africa