Hossam Hassan says AFCON semis shows African coaches deserve trust

By Velile Mnyandu
14th January 2026

It is not every day that the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) delivers a blockbuster semifinal lineup featuring four of the continent’s top five-ranked nations — all coached by sons of the soil.

For the first time in more than 60 years, only African coaches are in charge of the AFCON semifinals, a milestone Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan believes should send a powerful message to African football federations. Egypt will face Senegal, coached by Pape Thiaw, while in Rabat later tonight, Walid Regragui’s Morocco will face the Super Eagles, led by Eric Chelle, who is in charge of Nigeria...

"I may be biased, and with all due respect and appreciation for foreign coaches, I am one of those who favour national (locally based) coaches. The time has come for the national coach to bring Egypt back."

READ: Antoine Semenyo hails 'perfect' environment at Man City after dream start

The last non-African coach to lift the AFCON trophy was current Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos, who guided Cameroon to the title in 2017. Hassan also paid tribute to legendary Egyptian coach Hassan Shehata, who won an unprecedented three consecutive AFCON titles between 2006 and 2010, saying he set the benchmark for local coaches on the continent.

Meanwhile, the former 1998 AFCON champion — who finished as joint top scorer alongside South Africa’s Benni McCarthy — also highlighted several technical factors that he believes have contributed to the improved quality of football on display in Morocco...

"Football in Africa is developing again, and thankfully we are represented in Europe by a variety of African players. Yes, they are on par with the European players, if they are given the opportunities, they will perform as you have seen."

From better pitch conditions and officiating to more tactically disciplined teams, Hassan says this AFCON has reflected the steady evolution of African football.

The quality of the tournament is expected to remain a major talking point, especially with nine — and potentially one more — African nations set to qualify for the FIFA World Cup in the next six months, further underlining the continent’s growing competitiveness on the global stage.