In a startling turn of events, reports have emerged of a Somali national team player fleeing on a boat to Italy during a training camp in Tunisia, just before facing the Algerian team in the opening qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. The Somali press, without revealing his name, indicated that the player, a central defender, escaped on what is often referred to as a “death boat.” ( Somali player flees to Europe before Algeria match ) .
The Somali Football Federation has not issued any statement to confirm or deny these reports. The team delegation arrived in Algeria on Monday evening for their upcoming match.
The Somali national team is set to face Algeria this Thursday in the first round of the World Cup 2026 qualifiers at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in the Algerian capital. They are competing in Group Seven of the qualifiers, along with Guinea, Mozambique, Algeria, Uganda, and Botswana.
This incident mirrors a similar occurrence during the previous World Cup qualifiers, where players from the Djibouti team also fled. After suffering a heavy 8-0 defeat to Algeria on September 2, 2021, three Djibouti team members decided to escape.
Somali player flees to Europe before Algeria match For more information, visit dzwatch.net.
