Internationals: What's Ahead for African players?
Ahead of the final international break before this summer's World Cup, we take a look at what's in store for the stars of Ligue 1 McDonald's on international duty in Africa.
New faces for Morocco
Despite occasionally struggling in Ligue 1 McDonald's -- Sunday's thrilling win over Nantes notwithstanding -- it's been a fine season for RC Strasbourg, who have navigated injuries and a coaching change to impress in the two knockout competitions in which they're involved. Despite being a young side, they've got plenty of international pedigree -- Guéla Doué and Julio Enciso are regulars for Côte d'Ivoire and Paraguay, while Martial Godo just earned his first call-up for Les Élephants. Now, two more players have just been added to that group in the form of a pair of young Moroccan internationals, Samir El Mourabet and winter signing Gessime Yessine. Along with Rennes forward Yassir Zabiri, they're three fresh picks for new coach Mohamed Ouahbi, who will take charge for the Atlas Lions for the first time this week as they look to build toward improving on their strong showing in Qatar three years ago this summer.
🇲🇦 A first session with @FRMFOFFICIEL for Samir and Gessime
📸 @EnMaroc pic.twitter.com/A3x0GCKBCl— Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace English (@RCSA_English) March 24, 2026
High stakes for DR Congo
While most African countries are playing non-competitive fixtures, that's not the case for DR Congo. Their veteran-laden side, featuring the likes of Chancel Mbemba (LOSC), Arthur Masuaku (Lens) and Lionel Mpasi (Le Havre) will play a friendly tomorrow against Bermuda before facing one of New Caledonia or Jamaica for a place in the World Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico. It's a chance for the Leopards to qualify for the World Cup for the first time in more than fifty years.
Lefort joins Mauritania
There's no shortage of Ligue 1 McDonald's players accepting surprising call-ups in recent history -- witness Jérémy Morel playing for Madagascar or Danny Namaso becoming a Cameroon international, and this break will add to that with Angers defender Jordan Lefort accepting a Mauritania call-up. At 32, he's carved out a solid career domestically with a notable spell at Amiens as well, and now gets the chance to take on Lionel Messi as Mauritania head to Buenos Aires.
Our Ligue 1 talents ready to shine for Ghana 🇬🇭✨ pic.twitter.com/V9n6sdFHbV
— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) March 17, 2026
Auxerre 🤝 Ghana
A product of RC Strasbourg's youth academy, right back Marvin Senaya struggled to establish himself in the first team in Alsace, with Guéla Doué one of the league's most impressive players in the position. Following a raft of loan spells, he joined Auxerre permanently this summer, to great success. While his side have struggled at times, his play has caught the eye of the Ghanaian national team, and he's been called up alongside the Burgundians' captain Elisha Owusu, while Gideon Mensah has also been a regular part of the Black Stars' setup. Friendlies against Germany and Austria will provide a high calibre test, and Senaya will hope to impress ahead of this summer.
