Ghana's Black Stars have been Africa's only shining lights at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, with all five other competitors from the continent dropping out in the first round.
AllAfrica.com assesses their tournaments and just what went wrong...
ALGERIA
Pre-tournament aim: Second Round
Finish: First Round
Algeria were arguably the weakest of the six African participants and went out of the competition with just one point and no goals scored.
In coach Rabah Saadane they had an experienced campaigner with the national team, who led them in the 1986 World Cup, but it appeared that by the time they reached the 2010 event, there was trouble brewing in the camp.
This is a fatally-flawed side who were out of their depth at this level, and it was an achievement just to reach the finals at the expense of bitter north African rivals Egypt.
They were not humiliated, certainly, but the fact they could not manage a goal in 270 minutes of football gives a clue as to their limitations, and the mindset with which they entered each game.
They suffered only two narrow defeats, both 1-0 to Slovenia and the USA, but they never really looked like winning those games either, while they harried and harassed England into a 0-0 draw, a game that was their "final".
Record:
Played: 3
Won: 0
Draws: 1
Lost: 2
Goals For: 0
Goals Against: 2
Tournament rating: 3/10
CAMEROON
Pre-tournament aim: Quarterfinals
Finish: First Round
There are just no positives to be taken from Cameroon's campaign, It was a disaster.
Perhaps the signs were there in their sloppy showing at the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola in January, but few would have foreseen this capitulation.
It was desperately disappointing for the Indomitable Lions, who lost all three matches - against Japan, Denmark and Netherlands - with problems both on and off the pitch.
Their French coach Paul Le Guen made some questionable decisions, such as playing star striker Samuel Eto'o on the right side of midfield against Japan, and he was confronted by the senior players in the side ahead of the Denmark game, who wanted him to pick fewer youngsters and more senior players.
It created a poor environment for teamwork and while they quite obviously tried, at this level you get found out very quickly if you are not playing as a unit.
Le Guen held his ground, and in doing so probably lost the support of Eto'o and his teammates. Would it have been better had he relented and given in to their concerns? Who knows, but Le Guen quit his post shortly after his side finished their final fixture.
The Indomitable Lions enjoyed good support, including that from the South African fans who remember Cameroon as the first team the country played upon their return to international football in 1992, but a lack of belief in the coach's game plan and team selections ultimately cost them dear.
Record:
Played: 3
Won: 0
Draws: 0
Lost: 3
Goals For: 2
Goals Against: 5
Tournament rating: 1/10
COTE D'IVOIRE
Pre-tournament aim: Quarterfinals
Finish: First Round
Like South Africa, Cote d'Ivoire garnered four points, but still missed out on a place in the second round, ending the campaign of the African side who many believed had the best chance of success in this tournament.
The Elephants were stung by an injury to star man Didier Drogba ahead of the tournament, which not only limited his mobility in matches, but would have had a huge psychological affect on the other players.
They rely heavily on Drogba to provide them with goals and inspiration, this despite them having some excellent youngsters in the team, and when he was unable to come to the party they failed to spark.
A four-point haul, with a draw with Portugal (0-0), defeat to Brazil (1-3) and a win over North Korea (3-0) is not a bad set of results, but was not enough for a second-round place, which would have been the absolute minimum requirement for coach Sven-Goran Eriksson.
Eriksson met most of his players only weeks before the tournament, having been appointed in March, and so had little time to make a material difference to their play. Having now effectively left his post, his short tenure must be cast as a failure.
He did improve their defending, which had been so porous in the Africa Cup of Nations in January, but perhaps will look at the Portugal game, where they had a number of chances to score, as the deciding factor in their first-round exit.
Record:
Played: 3
Won: 1
Draws: 1
Lost: 1
Goals For: 4
Goals Against: 3
Tournament rating: 4/10
NIGERIA
Pre-tournament aim: Quarterfinals
Finish: First Round
Nigeria's campaign was a bitterly disappointing one, but they only have themselves to blame after throwing away victories over Greece and South Korea.
There is a large expatriate Nigerian community in South Africa and they, coupled with visitors to the country, gave the Super Eagles superb support in their three matches.
After a 1-0 defeat to Argentina in their opener, in which they had late chances to draw level, a silly red card was to blame for their 2-1 defeat to Greece. Nigeria were cruising at 1-0 until the 33rd minute, when Sani Kaita lashed out at a Greek player and received a straight red card.
It was the defining moment in the game and from there on in Greece piled on the pressure and were able to net twice to collect the points.
Nigeria then met South Korea in Durban in conditions that were perfect for football, but they failed to cash in on numerous opportunities to win, drawing 2-2. It turned out that a win would have been enough to see them into the knockout stages, but the goal somehow eluded them.
Perhaps their folly was changing coaches six months before the tournament started and bringing in the Swede, Lars Lagerback, who had no experience of coaching in Africa and no time to get the side playing the way he wanted.
Since the tournament, a few players have lashed out at the sacking of Shaibu Amodu, and it seems that perhaps not all was well in the camp at the finals.
Record:
Played: 3
Won: 0
Draws: 1
Lost: 2
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
Goals For: 3
Goals Against: 5
Tournament rating: 2/10
SOUTH AFRICA
Pre-tournament aim: Second Round
Finish: First Round
There was a lot of scepticism in South Africa about the team's ability to get out of the group stages, having been drawn with Mexico, Uruguay and France. But they came a lot closer to going through than many people thought.
For the second successive tournament, they gathered four points, but missed out on the knockout rounds through goal difference, with Mexico just pipping them to second place in Group A.
There are positives to take from their showing, both on and off the pitch. The fans certainly rallied behind Bafana Bafana and the fanatical support, in particular the vuvuzelas, energised the players - but not enough to raise their level significantly.
The mandate of coach Carlos Albert Parreira was to qualify them for the knockout stages and he failed in that. The win over a demoralised France in their final game did lift the mood around the camp, but has it also papered over the cracks somewhat?
South Africa now say farewell to Parreira, who in two spells in charge of the side certainly raised the level of the team, both tactically and physically. There were few fitter sides in the competition, but what the boys lacked was the skill and technical ability to make their advantage in that department really count.
Record:
Played: 3
Won: 1
Draws: 1
Lost: 1
Goals For: 3
Goals Against: 5
Tournament rating: 5/10
