Former Zambian defender Hichani Himonde has said African teams that competed at the 2026 FIFA World Cup will have a competitive advantage in the upcoming 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers.

Ten African nations played at the FIFA World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.

Morocco reached the quarterfinals of the tournament, while eight other nations featured in the round of 32. Egypt reached the round of 16.

Speaking to BolaNews, Himonde said the other nations will have to work extra hard to reach the level of competitiveness the 10 countries experienced at the global showpiece.

Himonde noted that the African nations face highly technical sides; hence, they are likely to come into the qualifiers as highly experienced and exposed sides.

“If you look at countries like Morocco, they were able to compete against a team with a lot of talent, such as Brazil; such a performance tells us that Morocco has elevated their game beyond the African game.”

In relation to Zambia’s group that features Algeria, Himonde said the Chipolopolo will have to prepare adequately to stop the Desert Foxes, who reached the last 32 at the FIFA World Cup.

“Algeria has been playing competitive football at the World Cup, while Zambia has not played any single match since the friendly against Argentina. The question is how fit and prepared physically and mentally are we going to be when the qualifiers start?” he asked.

“It’s going to be a tall order for Zambia, but we have some history between us and Algeria; based on that, the rivalry between the two sides will make the matches tough.”

Zambia will face Algeria and Togo in the group qualifiers.