The Ivory Coast team won direct quotas from Africa to qualify for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, after managing to top their qualifying group, BTA reported.
The team returns to the biggest football stage for the first time since 2014. In their last match of the qualifiers, the "elephants" won at home 3-0 against Kenya. Frank Kessie, Yann Diomande and Amad Diallo were on target for the winners, who edged out Gabon, who won 2-0 over Burundi, by just one point. Both goals in the match came in the final five minutes of regular time, scored by Brian Mayo Ngoua and Mario Lemina.
Gabon and DR Congo will participate in the African zone playoffs. They will also include the teams of Cameroon and Nigeria, who finished second in two other qualifying groups.
The African play-offs will be played in November in a single direct elimination match on neutral ground in Morocco, with only one of the four teams qualifying for the intercontinental play-off in March.
At next year's World Cup, Africa will be represented by Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Algeria, Ghana, Cape Verde, South Africa, Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire.