“…To develop football, you first have to develop youth coaches.”
— Ted Dumitru
If identity is the foundation of African football, then coach education is the vehicle through which that identity is passed from one generation to the next.
The coaching philosophy across the African continent must reflect the origins of African players. The intricate abilities of the African player must become the cornerstone of coach education and coaching methodology. African football is not unique because people say it is. It is unique because it is African.
Our educational material, coaching frameworks, and teaching tools must therefore reflect that uniqueness. Otherwise, the very qualities that define African football—creativity, exuberance, rhythm, improvisation, flair and showmanship—are gradually coached out of our players.
Africa possesses qualities that cannot be manufactured elsewhere.
We can sing and dance with or without instruments. Rhythm comes naturally to us. We improvise. We create. We express ourselves differently. These are not merely cultural characteristics; they are football qualities. Coach education should preserve them rather than suppress them.
Mbekezeli Mbokazi is an excellent example.
With the greatest respect to everyone who has contributed to his journey, he is, in many ways, a self-developed player. His growth came largely through exposure rather than structured football development. I am often tempted to say that had he been “interfered with” too early—coached according to conventional methods—the football world might never have witnessed the player who eventually performed on the FIFA World Cup stage.
That is not an argument against coaching.
It is an argument against coaching that misunderstands the player.
Arsène Wenger once said:
“Between the ages of five and twelve, no coaching is better than bad coaching.”
Within the African context, I often take that statement a step further.
I say, “At all ages.”
Poor coaching can limit a player just as easily at eighteen as it can at eight. When coaching fails to understand the player’s natural qualities, it does not develop talent—it reshapes it into something ordinary.
Not many people know Mbokazi’s background or appreciate the journey that brought him to the international stage.
He is exceptional.
Yet he is not an exception.
He received an opportunity and, to his credit, embraced it with both hands. Many talented African players before him never received that opportunity. Many today still do not. Others may never receive it at all.
That should concern us.
This FIFA World Cup also highlighted another important lesson.
Argentina dominated the coaching landscape, with six Argentine coaches leading six different national teams—Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay, and the United States.
When one nation consistently produces coaches trusted to lead other countries on football’s biggest stage, we must recognise the value of coach education. That level of influence is never accidental. It is the product of deliberate investment, structured learning, and football literature developed over many decades.
Africa must begin building the same foundation.
“One of the challenges we have is that we don’t value or cherish the idea of getting new information. We are obsessed with what we already know,” Sicelo Eric Ngema.
The time has come for Africa to develop, use, and continuously improve its own coaching material. Where quality African content already exists, it should be embraced rather than ignored. Where it does not exist, it must be created.
Africa needs its own football technical literature– its own original, indigenous knowledge. The time for copying others is now gone. That phenomenon should be frowned upon. The African Coaching Literature has got to talk to the African player, undiluted.
We need to create and respect platforms for technical communication. That in Africa, you hardly hear of Coaches Conferences, Seminars, Summits, Workshops, and platforms where technical information is shared and where coaches are able to develop themselves, must come to an end. Such platforms are non-existent in my country and region. If other countries and regions do it, they are on the right track. At continental level, I am yet to hear about such.
Collecting certificates has become the one obsession that is occupies African coaches. Be it here on the continent, or mostly, in Europe. We are getting closer to being certified coaches rather than knowledgeable coaches.
Coaches in other continents meet and discuss the Game. If there was one thing we should copy from other continents, it would be this – the creation of platforms to engage technically as coaches on the continent, in the region, country, and nothing else – not copying coaching philosophies, not copying coaching methodologies, not coaching content and not even coaching language.
“Language, any language, has a dual character: it is both a means of communication and a carrier of culture: Ngugi wa Thiongo
While there are differences among African nations, those differences are far smaller than those that exist between continents. Our cultures differ, but our football instincts share common roots. That provides more than enough common ground upon which to build an authentically African coaching philosophy.
Until we teach African football through African eyes, we will continue preparing African players to play someone else’s game.
Coach education is, therefore, not merely about producing better qualified coaches.
It is about preserving Africa’s football identity.
Without that, identity remains an idea.
With it, identity becomes a way of playing, a way of teaching and, ultimately, a way of winning.
- Youth Development: Winning Can Wait
“Winning without developing is temporary. Developing guarantees future success.”
— Marcelo Bielsa
If Africa is to make a genuine breakthrough at the FIFA World Cup, youth development must become a priority rather than an afterthought.
It is unrealistic to expect African players to compete consistently against opponents who begin structured football development at five or six years of age when many of our own players only receive serious attention in their teenage years—if they are fortunate enough to receive it at all.
Across much of the continent, two troubling trends continue to dominate youth football.
The first is the pay-to-play model, where opportunity depends more on financial means than football potential.
The second is an increasing obsession with winning youth matches. Young players are coached to produce results rather than to develop. In many schools and academies, coaches are hired, retained or dismissed according to scorelines. The same mentality exists in many youth clubs.
That cannot be the standard by which youth coaching is judged.
A youth coach should never be evaluated primarily on how many matches the team wins. The true measure of success is how many players are developed for the next level.
Africa must fundamentally change its priorities.
At youth level, the first objective is not to win.
The first objective is to develop the player.
As Arsène Wenger famously said:
“The first idea is not to win the game. The first idea is to develop the player.”
That philosophy should become the foundation of youth football across the continent.
Once again, Mbekezeli Mbokazi illustrates this point.
Consider the South African national team that played against Canada during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Williams, Mudau, Modiba, Mbokazi, Mokoena, Sithole, Appollis, Mofokeng, Maseko and Makgopa all reached the highest level. Yet many of these players received little structured football during their earliest years. Most only began attracting serious attention during their teenage years.
If we include the remainder of the squad, the picture becomes even more worrisome.
This is only one national team, yet it is probably representative of many African countries.
Morocco remains the notable exception. Many of their players were born and developed outside Africa, having benefited from structured youth systems before representing the country internationally.
Within Africa itself, the situation is very different.
Many nations still lack organised youth leagues. As a result, talented players seldom compete regularly against the best players of their own age. Without consistent, challenging matches, development slows.
Meanwhile, youth clubs across Europe compete in organised national competitions and UEFA youth tournaments that mirror senior football structures. Those experiences accelerate player growth long before those players reach senior level.
Africa must begin creating similar environments.
If additional investment becomes available, it should first be directed towards youth football leagues—not expensive technologies such as VAR.
Great football nations are built long before players wear the senior national team jersey.
As Maya Angelou reminded us:
“All great achievements require time.”
Africa cannot shortcut youth development.
Nor should it try.
By Ziphozonke Dlangalala, Football Coach and Youth Football Specialist
Links to previous Parts below:
ANALYSIS: Why Africa still falls short at the FIFA World Cup – Part 1
