World Cup 2026: three Africans feature in the team of the round of 16

The round of 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, concluded on Tuesday night with Switzerland advancing at the expense of Colombia after a penalty shootout (4-3).

At the end of this stage, Morocco, France, Norway, England, Spain, Belgium, Argentina, and Switzerland secured their spots in the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Canada, Paraguay, Brazil, Mexico, Portugal, the United States, Egypt, and Colombia saw their journeys end in the last 16.

Morocco is the best-represented African nation in the team of the round, with Achraf Hakimi, Noussair Mazraoui, and Azzedine Ounahi all honored after the Atlas Lions' triumph over the Netherlands.

Hakimi, Mazraoui and Ounahi shine in the ideal XI for the round of 16

The specialist outlet SofaScore has unveiled its team of the round of 16 for the 2026 World Cup, comprising the top-performing players from this phase of the competition.

• Goalkeeper: Gregor Kobel (Switzerland).

• Defenders: Achraf Hakimi (Morocco) – Dayot Upamecano (France) – Cristian Romero (Argentina) – Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco).

• Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (England) – Leandro Paredes (Argentina) – Azzedine Ounahi (Morocco).

• Forwards: Charles De Ketelaere (Belgium) – Erling Haaland (Norway) – Lionel Messi (Argentina).

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Mohamed Rek |

Editorfr, ar, en

Mohamed Rek- sports content writer with over 10 years of experience creating football content in Arabic and French for platforms such as Foot Africa and Starafrica, combining accuracy, creativity, and audience engagement.

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