African nations at the FIFA World Cup by Asamoah Gyan. Had Ghana won their quarter final they would have become the very first African nation to progress to the semifinals of the world cup. Of the 32 countries that participated in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, FIFA ranked Ghana 7th. The 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil marked the first time more than one African team went beyond the group stages. While Ghana and Cameroon both collected disappointing results (apart from Ghana's 2–2 draw with later champions Germany, which saw them becoming the only team not to lose against the Germans in the entire tournament) and eventually
Russia at the FIFA World Cup have won a Golden Boot award each. Salenko is the only player who has ever scored five goals in a single World Cup match, and the only player to win the Golden Boot even though his team has been eliminated in the Group stage. Russia at the FIFA World Cup Russia has participated in 4 FIFA World Cups since its independence in December 1991. The Russian Federation played their first international match against Mexico on 16 August 1992 winning 2-0. Their first participation in a World Cup was the United States of America in 1994 and they achieved 18th place.