African e-sports is rapidly adopting formal structures

Africa’s esports scene is developing beyond a collection of tournaments and gaming communities into a more organised national competition system.

Countries are building teams, selection pathways and federations as competitive gaming takes on more of the structures of conventional sport.

“Our long-term vision is to build a sustainable and inclusive ecosystem for esports based on three pillars: infrastructure, training, and good governance,” according to Abdelkader Elkalidi of Morocco’s Fédération Royale Marocaine des Jeux Électroniques (FRMJE), describing an approach that is increasingly visible across the continent.

The change will be on display in Casablanca from August 27, when eight African nations compete across eFootball Mobile, eFootball Console and Rocket League at the inaugural FIFAe Continental Championships Africa.

The new regional competition is the latest stage in FIFAe’s pathway to the FIFAe World Cup 2026.

More than 120 nations entered the 2026 FIFAe Nations League, with qualification for the continental championships determined through consistency points and direct qualification.

FIFA says the new regional competitions are intended to strengthen regional competition, create clearer routes to global events and support a sustainable competitive ecosystem for its member associations.

For Africa, that means countries are identifying players, appointing coaches and managers, building federations and entering continental competitions as national teams.

The scale of that national approach is also visible in the Esports Nations Cup, the other major competition being built around country-based teams.

The tournament attracted more than 630 applications from 152 countries and territories, with national team partners and managers subsequently appointed across more than 100 markets. Its 2026 edition spans 16 game titles and carries a US$45 million funding package, including US$20 million for players and coaches, US$5 million in club incentives and US$20 million for national-team development.

That investment is designed to build more than a tournament. The ENC model gives national partners responsibility for assembling teams, while coaches select players, creating a formal chain from national representation to talent selection.

Morocco is the clearest example of that development

The country will host the African FIFAe Continental Championship while competing as one of the continent’s strongest esports nations. Its national Rocket League team, made up of Moroccan players ANORIQ, SKYRIX and RAY and coached by KASSIO, recently won the African title in the FIFAe African Nations League.

The results sit on top of a domestic system that has been developing since the FRMJE was established in 2021.

The federation works with the Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football and government institutions to develop football esports, while domestic competitions such as eBotola and eDawry provide regular competition for players and clubs.

The system also includes training for players, coaches and referees, as well as efforts to expand access to gaming equipment through youth centres.

Elkalidi has described the Moroccan approach as one built around infrastructure, training and governance, with merit-based selection determining which players earn the right to represent the country internationally.

The result is a pathway from domestic competition to national representation

Morocco has repeatedly qualified for FIFAe’s global competitions across eFootball Console and eFootball Mobile, reaching the top eight in Console and finishing runner-up in Mobile in 2024. In 2025, Morocco achieved a triple qualification for the FIFAe Finals across eFootball Console, eFootball Mobile and Rocket League.

The national institutionalisation model is extending beyond Morocco.

Kenya qualified for the African FIFAe Continental Championship in July in eFootball Console and Rocket League, adding another milestone to the country’s growing competitive esports scene.

The campaign also underscored growing collaboration between the Electronic Sports Kenya Federation (ESKF) and Football Kenya Federation (FKF), which supported the team’s preparations.

That partnership points to an emerging national competition pathway in which Kenyan players are increasingly competing as representatives of the country rather than solely as individual gamers or club players.

In the Console competition, 19-year-old Daniel Kibiwott and 17-year-old Elvis Kibet, coached by Timothy Kiarie, helped Kenya navigate a difficult group before beating Libya 2-0 in the quarter-finals to secure a top-eight finish and a place in the continental championship.

Tanzania offers another example of how individual talent is being absorbed into these emerging national structures.

Tanzanian FC 26 player Hermes won the Southern Africa special qualifier for the Esports Nations Cup without losing a match, earning a place in the planned national competition.

Although the ENC has since been postponed by a year to November 2027, the qualification showed how individual players can progress through pathways designed to identify national representatives.

Tanzania is also among the eight African nations competing in FIFAe’s eFootball Mobile continental championship. The country finished second behind Egypt in its African FIFAe Nations League group, winning four of five matches.

South Africa illustrates a more established version of the model. Mind Sports South Africa runs regional, provincial and national competitions that feed into national-team trials, with its July 2026 selection covering titles including eFootball, Rocket League, Counter-Strike 2, MLBB and Tekken 8. Players qualify for the trials through performances at regional, provincial or national championships before competing for places on teams representing the country internationally.

Nigeria is building a broader institutional layer around the same idea. The Esports Federation of Nigeria is developing national competitions, international representation, talent pathways and certification for coaches, referees and officials.

Its bid to host the 2028 Esports Nations Cup also frames esports as an opportunity spanning jobs, tourism, technology and youth development.

Rwanda is also on the move. On August 21 to 23, Kigali hosted national EA Sports FC and eFootball competitions to select representatives for the SportsBiz Africa Esports Cup, creating a direct route from domestic competition to continental representation.

The September tournament will bring together players from Rwanda, Kenya, South Africa, Madagascar, Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt and Morocco.

The African field in Casablanca shows the breadth of the emerging system.

Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia, Egypt, Tanzania, Nigeria, Somalia and Madagascar will compete in eFootball Mobile. The Console competition features Morocco, Madagascar, Tunisia, Ghana, Senegal, Libya, Kenya and Egypt. Rocket League brings together Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Madagascar, South Africa and Kenya.

The ecosystem is also creating a new layer of esports professionals.

National team managers, coaches, referees and federation officials are becoming part of the competitive infrastructure. Côte d’Ivoire, for example, has, recently, developed a national federation and national-team structure, with Jean-Philippe N’Guessan serving as president of the Fédération Ivoirienne Esports.

The economic opportunity provides an incentive for the ongoing developments .

Africa’s gaming market is estimated at US$2.29 billion in 2026 and projected to reach US$4.10 billion by 2031, according to Mordor Intelligence. The continent has an estimated 349 million gamers, with more than 95% playing on mobile devices.