Qualification for the 2026 World Cup is underway in Asia and South America, with Mohamed Salah, Liverpool's prolific scorer and Egypt's captain, gearing up to showcase his talents in Africa's two-year qualifying campaign. This campaign, starting on Wednesday, will determine the nine teams from Africa that will secure automatic places in the event co-hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the US.


The expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams means Africa now has an increased quota of finalists from five to nine, with the potential for an additional place through a new playoff system. Africa's qualifying process is renowned for being challenging due to long distances, poor flight connections, extreme weather conditions, basic facilities, and a sometimes hostile environment for visiting teams.


Carlos Queiroz, a seasoned coach who has worked with various national teams, once described the African preliminaries as a "nightmare." The 54 African entrants for the 2026 World Cup were divided into nine groups, with only the group winners guaranteed a spot at the finals.


The four best-ranked runners-up will enter a playoff to determine one team that will advance to the new-style intercontinental playoff tournament. This tournament will feature one team from each continent, competing to secure the last two places in the World Cup lineup.


Mohamed Salah, fresh from scoring two Premier League goals against Brentford, looks set to shine for Egypt against Group 'A' rivals Djibouti and Sierra Leone. Other Egyptian players making an impact in major European leagues include Omar Marmoush and Mostafa Mohamed.


Djibouti, considered one of the weakest African national teams, faces Egypt in Cairo on Thursday. Sierra Leone, handicapped by the lack of an international-standard stadium, will host Egypt in Liberia on Sunday.


Burkina Faso poses a strong challenge in Group 'A,' ranked 10th in Africa, just below Egypt. Guinea-Bissau and Ethiopia are the other contenders in the group.


While Egypt has a remarkable record in the Africa Cup of Nations, winning it seven times, their World Cup qualifying history has been challenging, making it to the finals only three times compared to Cameroon's eight appearances.


Elsewhere, Cameroon starts its campaign against Mauritius in Douala, with a tougher match against Libya next Tuesday in Group 'D.' Morocco, the first African country to reach the World Cup semi-finals last year, faces Tanzania in Group 'E' next Tuesday.


Nigeria, missing key players like Victor Osimhen and Samuel Chukwueze, will rely on talented replacements against Lesotho and Zimbabwe. Concerns surround the Super Eagles' defense, particularly goalkeeper Francis Uzoho.


Zimbabwe, back after a ban, faces Rwanda in Group 'C,' having not played a full international match in almost two years. Due to facilities not meeting international standards, 19 countries, including Zimbabwe, have moved their home games to neutral venues.


Ghana's coach, Chris Hughton, acknowledges the pressure ahead of qualifiers against Madagascar and the Comoros.