Sébastien Desabre, the technical director of the Democratic Republic of Congo national team, has said that an African side winning the World Cup for the first time is no longer merely a dream, but "a matter of time, nothing more."
The French coach, whose team faces Uzbekistan on Saturday evening local time in a bid to secure a place in the round of 32 at the 2026 World Cup, has been working on the African continent for 15 years.
Desabre added: "The infrastructure is improving, the coaches are improving, and the players are improving."
Morocco reached the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup and are performing well in the current edition of the tournament, which is being held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
Morocco is also co-hosting the 2030 World Cup edition, and the Atlas Lions face the Netherlands on Monday evening local time in the round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup, having finished as runners-up in Group C during the group stage.
Desabre is looking to the future, expressing his hope that more African teams will participate in future finals, after a record 10 African sides featured in this edition.
Desabre, 49, concluded his remarks by saying: "I think there should be more teams. But that also applies to the other continents."