CAF coaching investment delivers record growth as Strategy Conference turns focus to Africa’s technical future

African football has recorded a sharp rise in qualified coaches following increased investment in coach education by the Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF), with 19,685 coaches certified across the continent between 2021 and 2026.

The figures, released ahead of the CAF Strategy Conference from 7-9 October in Sal, Cabo Verde, show the scale of progress in one of the areas CAF regards as fundamental to the long-term development of the African game.

Of the coaches certified during the six-year period, 12,770 obtained CAF C licences, 4,846 CAF B licences, 1,945 CAF A licences and 124 CAF Pro licences.

The growth in education and licensing has coincided with a significant increase in the number of African coaches entrusted with national teams at the highest level, with six of Africa’s 10 representatives at the FIFA World Cup 2026 led by African coaches.

That represented another major step from 2010, when only one African coach was in charge of a team from the continent at the World Cup, and strengthened the argument that sustained investment in technical education is beginning to produce results.

Coaching will therefore be a central part of discussions in Cabo Verde as CAF, its 54 Member Associations, national-team coaches and international football experts examine how the foundations already created can be strengthened on the road to the FIFA World Cup 2030.

Nearly 20,000 coaches certified

CAF’s figures demonstrate the scale of the investment made in building a larger pool of qualified coaches across the continent.

A total of 19,685 coaches were certified between 2021 and 2026, spreading development across the different levels of the CAF coaching pathway.

The largest number came at CAF C level, where 12,770 coaches were certified, creating a broad base from which coaches can progress through the licensing structure.

A further 4,846 received CAF B licences, while 1,945 were certified at CAF A level.

At the elite end of the pathway, 124 coaches obtained the CAF Pro licence.

The annual figures also show how quickly coach education expanded.

The number of coaches certified across the four levels stood at 1,797 in 2021, rising to 2,593 in 2022 and 3,746 in 2023.

The total reached 4,280 in 2024, the highest annual figure in the period, before 3,938 coaches were certified in 2025 and another 3,331 in 2026.

Those numbers underline the increasing reach of formal coaching education across CAF’s Member Associations and the attempt to create a deeper pool of technically qualified coaches at domestic, youth and senior international level.

From investment to the World Cup

The impact is increasingly visible at the top of the African game.

African coaches have historically struggled for representation at the World Cup despite the continent producing generations of outstanding players.

Only one African coach led one of the continent’s teams at the 2010 World Cup.

That figure increased to two in 2014 and remained at two in 2018 before a significant breakthrough in 2022, when all five African representatives were coached by Africans.

Four years later, with Africa’s representation expanded to 10 teams, six African coaches were in charge at the 2026 World Cup.

That development was accompanied by Africa’s strongest collective performance at the tournament, with nine of the continent’s 10 representatives reaching the knockout stage.

The achievements provide an important link between CAF’s investment away from the spotlight and the performances seen on football’s biggest stage.

Among the African coaches to make an impact were coaches who had developed through different pathways — from domestic African football to youth development structures and national-team systems.

Bubista guided Cabo Verde to their first World Cup before taking the debutants into the knockout stage, while Emerse Faé led Cote d'Ivoire into the knockout rounds for the first time in their history.

Hossam Hassan led Egypt at the finals, while African coaches were also central to the campaigns of Senegal and other continental representatives.

The progression follows the landmark 2022 achievement of Walid Regragui, who became the first African coach to reach a World Cup semi-final when he guided Morocco into the last four.

Coaching at the heart of the Strategy Conference

The figures provide important context for the CAF Strategy Conference because the meeting is intended to look beyond individual tournament results and examine the structures that can make African success sustainable.

Coach education, licensing, knowledge-sharing and stronger pathways from domestic football into elite national-team management will all be relevant to that discussion.

The Conference will also analyse the performances of Africa’s 10 representatives at the 2026 World Cup and consider how the lessons from the tournament can be applied across all 54 Member Associations.

That means understanding not only what teams did on the pitch, but also how coaches were prepared, how technical departments supported them and how African football can continue producing coaches capable of competing at the highest level.

For CAF, the numbers from 2021 to 2026 provide evidence of a growing technical base.

The next challenge is ensuring that the thousands of coaches being trained and certified are given opportunities, continuing education and clear routes through youth, club and national-team football.

The rise from one African World Cup coach in 2010 to six in 2026, combined with nearly 20,000 CAF-certified coaches in six years, suggests the investment is increasingly translating into opportunity at the elite level.

As African football turns its attention towards 2030, the Strategy Conference in Cabo Verde will consider how that progress can be accelerated — and how a larger, better-trained generation of African coaches can become one of the foundations of the continent’s next phase of growth.