Sudan coach, Kwesi Appiah, has revealed his ambitious goal to qualify the Falcons of Jediane for the 2026 World Cup after securing a ticket for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament.
Appiah, 63, signed a three-year contract with the Sudanese Football Association earlier this year and has since steered the team to a spot in the upcoming AFCON tournament in Morocco, despite the country’s ongoing civil unrest.
Currently, Sudan leads Group B in the 2026 World Cup qualification with 10 points from four matches.
After securing AFCON qualification, Appiah spoke in an interview, expressing his aspiration to guide Sudan to their first-ever World Cup appearance.
He shared his initial conversation with the Sudanese FA, stating that although no specific targets were set for him, he personally committed to qualifying for both tournaments.
“When I was appointed, I was not given any target but rather I was told to build a team within a period number of years but I told them that would be difficult due to the unrest and it is just two clubs who were playing in CAF competitions,” he told Accra based Asempa FM.
“Despite the unrest, I convinced them that I wanted to qualify for the AFCON and the World Cup and if only they could support me, we would achieve it and now we have qualified for the AFCON.”
Appiah also reflected on his previous experience in Sudan, noting that when he left in 2015, five players he had coached at Al Khartoum were still part of the national team.
“When I left Sudan in 2015, five of the players I coached at Al Khartoum were still in the national team so I used them to help get in touch with other players and they helped me a lot,” he added.
He praised the discipline of Sudanese players, saying, “Sudanese players are well disciplined and they are always willing to do more so that helped me a lot. Even during the qualifiers, they always wanted to know if they were doing what was right or not.”
The Sudanese squad consists entirely of players based in African clubs, with many from domestic rivals Al Hilal and Al Merrikh. Due to the ongoing instability in Sudan, both clubs are currently playing in the Mauritanian league.
Looking ahead, Sudan will face Senegal and South Sudan in the March 2025 matchdays of World Cup qualification.
