CAF, Africa’s football governing body, last week released the format for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers scheduled to run from November 2023 to March 2026.Here’s how it will work. First of all, the 2026 World Cup to be hosted by Mexico, Canada and the USA will have 48 teams up from the usual 32. Africa, the second largest Confederation after UEFA, was given nine slots with a possible tenth to be determined in a FIFA Play-Off tournament.The 54 Member Associations (MAs) forming CAF are expected to take part in the qualifiers. They will be placed in nine groups with each group winner automatically making the cut.The four best runners-up (from the groups) will play in a CAF Play-Off tournament. The winner (CAF Play-Off tournament) will play in the FIFA Play-Off Tournament.It’s worth noting that only 13 African nations have ever qualified for the World Cup, the biggest football showpiece, with three; DR Congo, Angola and Togo, having done so only once.Cameroon is the most qualified African country with eight appearances, two more than Morocco, Nigeria and Tunisia. Exclusive: Harambee Stars to play Mauritius, Djibouti and Pakistan in June international window##NAJAVA_MECA_7277174##With the expanded World Cup, Africa will get more slots at the table of men, yet, the biggest question for the Kenyan fan is, can the Harambee Stars dream? Is it possible to grab this golden opportunity and make history by qualifying for their maiden Mundial?Former Harambee Stars coach Jacob “Ghost” Mulee thinks it’s possible, but not an easy task. “The World Cup is a very tricky affair because it depends on the group that you get,” Ghost, who qualified Stars to the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Tunisia, told Mozzart Sport. The draw for the African Qualifiers will be on Wednesday 12 July 2023 in Cotonou, Benin – the night before the 45th CAF Ordinary General AssemblyAccording to Ghost, three things need to happen between now and November if Kenya are serious about gracing the 2026 World, get organized, convince players with Kenyan roots playing in Europe to play for Kenya and lastly, play quality friendly matches.”Football is not easy and don’t expect to qualify from local based players, you must have a lot of players playing in Europe in your squad because they play professional football week in week out and are better coached,” the former Tusker FC coach said.He gave an example with Morocco, the first African country to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup, who had 23 European-based players in their last World Cup’s squad in Qatar in 2022 with only three home-based players. “That is one of the factors that’s going to help Kenya.”Stars coach Engin Firat is already on a charm offensive, convincing European-based players of Kenyan extraction to don the national team colors. Musa Oundo: The glue holding AFC Leopards’ midfieldIn their last friendly against Iran in Tehran in March, Stars had new faces including striker Alfred Scriven, Wilkins Ochieng, Richard Odada and Daniel Anyembe. Stars will play in a four-nation tournament involving hosts Mauritius, Djibouti and Pakistan in early June. “It’s a good start because the coach may be planning to use the tournament to identify local players he can work with in future, but moving forward we need to play more quality friendlies,” Ghost said. Mulee also pointed out that for Stars to make the World Cup, they must have good travel logistics, if possible they should always use private chartered planes for away games.”You cannot be using normal passenger planes to honor World Cup qualifiers, that’s a no go zone, there must be a private arrangement for convenience.”
