The times they are a-changing

One deduction we can make after the first few weeks of the World Cup is that the standard of football all around the globe is at a whole new level.

Think back to 1974 when Zaire were ridiculed. Now, in 2026 under the DR Congo flag, they are scaring the life out of England.

Nine out of the ten African teams made it through to the knockouts from the groups. Morocco sent the Netherlands home; Ghana will be a tough opponent for Colombia; and Algeria will be no walkover for Switzerland. I commentated on Egypt’s final warm-up game when they sparred with Brazil. This is one of the few teams to tame Spain, as they did in a goalless game in March.

It’s not just the emergence of the African teams. Japan gave Brazil and almighty fright. Unlike some countries who splash the cash looking for instant success, they have a plan called “JFA 2025” which starts on the school fields, develops in youth soccer, and the philosophy continues all the way up to the international team.

Any club with a Japanese player was seen as trying to cash in on the Asian market a few years ago. Now, a footballer imported from Japan is almost certainly one of the best players in the squad and technically excellent.

Qatar got a bad rap when given the 2022 World Cup but it is a country that loves its football. None other than Sir Alex Ferguson was involved in the blueprint for the Aspire Academy which has few equals. This time. they qualified for the finals; in future years they intend to compete with the other developing sporting nations.

I hark back to my youth. When I was released by Derby County, I accepted a scholarship to an American university. My teammates were assembled from all around the world. We had two Nigerians, Boniface Uche and Innocent Okafor, who were as good as anyone I’d faced back in England of a similar age. Our Liberian striker called Joshua Phillips was something else. My roommate had somehow made his way to the USA from Colombia; he would make his way in football.

If I’d told folks back home that these guys were as good as the Manchester United prodigy Norman Whiteside, they would have thought I’d gone crazy and sneered at me.

Spin forwards a few decades and those players would have been on the radar of the top European clubs. The likes of Brighton, Bournemouth, Wolves, Real Madrid, and Barcelona would be tracking them.

My Colombian pal was called Juan Carlos Osorio – he went on to manage México at the 2018 World Cup and masterminded a victory over Germany.

Juan proved that the world is a small place when it comes to football. The new generation is benefitting from their fellow countryfolk returning home from their worldwide adventures with wisdom and the ability to coach and develop the young players.

The European elitism is taking a huge blow as Italy failed to make the tournament, Germany and Holland are on an early flight home.

The times are a-changing.