Africa has a total of 54 recognised sovereign states. Every country in Africa has a national football team.
All 54 national football teams in Africa have the opportunity to participate in the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) and FIFA Cups -respectively.
African national football teams
Below are all the African national football teams.
| Algeria | Eritrea | Mali |
| Angola | Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) | Mauritania |
| Benin | Ethiopia | Mauritius |
| Benin | Gabon | Morocco |
| Botswana | Gambia | Mozambique |
| Burkina Faso | Ghana | Namibia |
| Burundi | Guinea | Niger |
| Cape Verde | Gabon | Nigeria |
| Cameroon | Gambia | Rwanda |
| CAR | Ghana | São Tomé and Príncipe |
| Chad | Guinea | Senegal |
| Comoros | Guinea-Bissau | Seychelles |
| Congo | Kenya | Sierra Leone |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | Lesotho | Somalia |
| Côte d’Ivoire | Liberia | South Africa |
| Djibouti | Libya | South Sudan |
| Egypt | Madagascar | Sudan |
| Equatorial Guinea | Malawi | Tanzania |
The Confederation of African Football (CAF)
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is the governing body that regulates and oversees African football activities.
Since its formation in 1957, CAF has been crucial in promoting and organising football competitions across the continent.
CAF hosts the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON, Africa’s premier international tournament, which features national teams from the region.
Fourteen national football teams have won the AFCON title so far from 33 finals. Egypt, the most successful team in AFCON, has lifted seven of these titles.
Morocco comes second with five titles.
Africa Cup of Nations winners
| Year | Winners | Runners-up |
| 1957 | Egypt | Ethiopia |
| 1959 | Egypt | Sudan |
| 1962 | Ethiopia | Egypt |
| 1963 | Ghana | Sudan |
| 1965 | Ghana | Tunisia |
| 1968 | DR Congo | Ghana |
| 1970 | Sudan | Ghana |
| 1972 | Congo | Mali |
| 1974 | DR Congo | Zambia |
| 1976 | Morocco | Guinea |
| 1978 | Ghana | Uganda |
| 1980 | Nigeria | Algeria |
| 1982 | Ghana | Libya |
| 1984 | Cameroon | Nigeria |
| 1986 | Egypt | Cameroon |
| 1988 | Cameroon | Nigeria |
| 1990 | Algeria | Nigeria |
| 1992 | Ivory Coast | Ghana |
| 1994 | Nigeria | Zambia |
| 1996 | South Africa | Tunisia |
| 1998 | Egypt | South Africa |
| 2000 | Cameroon | Nigeria |
| 2002 | Cameroon | Senegal |
| 2004 | Tunisia | Morocco |
| 2006 | Egypt | Ivory Coast |
| 2008 | Egypt | Cameroon |
| 2010 | Egypt | Ghana |
| 2012 | Zambia | Ivory Coast |
| 2013 | Nigeria | Burkina Faso |
| 2015 | Ivory Coast | Ghana |
| 2017 | Cameroon | Egypt |
| 2019 | Algeria | Senegal |
| 2021 | Senegal | Egypt |
How many teams qualify for AFCON & CHAN?
AFCON has a total of 16 teams. These 16 teams are grouped into four categories. Each winning pair from the four categories proceed to the elimination match.
Eight teams per group will qualify to play in the tournament. This brings the total to 24 slots.
The African Nations Championship (CHAN) was launched in 2009, and the first edition was hosted in Côte d’Ivoire. The biennial football tournament alternates with AFCON.
Participation in CHAN is limited to players who play in the domestic leagues in their home country.
The 2023 African Nations Championship was held earlier this year in Algeria. The tournament featured 18 teams. Senegal beat Algeria in a penalty shootout.
Fun Fact: In 2020, Morocco became the first nation to win the CHAN title twice consecutively after the team beat Mali 2-0 in the final.
How many teams does FIFA recognise?
FIFA is affiliated with 211 national men’s football and 129 national women’s football teams across the world.
Which national football teams are not recognised by FIFA?
FIFA does not recognize a total of seven national football teams. These teams are from countries that the UN does not recognise:
- Abkhazia
- Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh)
- Northern Cyprus
- South Ossetia
- Transnistria
- Western Sahara
The only African football team that is a non-FIFA member is Somaliland. As a country, Somaliland is not eligible to be a member of either CAF or FIFA. They are, however, a member of CONIFA.
The Zanzibar and Reunion football teams are not recognised by FIFA, despite being members of confederations connected to the football federation.
The two countries are dependent territories of Tanzania and France-respectively.
Fun Fact: The Confederation of Independent Football Associations (CONIFA) is the football federation for all associations outside FIFA. The organisation was formed in 2013. Somaliland got its membership in 2015.
Why are Kenya and Zimbabwe banned from AFCON 2023?
Last year, the Zimbabwe and Kenyan national teams were barred from participating in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. CAF announced reports of government interference in football activities in the two countries.
The ban will prevent the two countries from participating in international football tournaments.
How many times have African national football teams participated in the World Cup?
Since the formation of the World Cup in 1930, 13 African national football teams have participated in the international tournament.
Egypt was the first African country to play in the World Cup in 1934.
| Football team | Frequency of participation in the World Cup |
| Cameroon | 7 |
| Nigeria | 6 |
| Morocco | 5 |
| Tunisia | 5 |
| Algeria | 4 |
| Ivory Coast | 3 |
| Egypt | 3 |
| Ghana | 3 |
| South Africa | 3 |
| Senegal | 2 |
| Zaire | 1 |
| Angola | 1 |
| Togo | 1 |
Africa has reached as far as the quarter-finals of the World Cup three times. Cameroon was the first in 1990, followed by Senegal in 1998 and Ghana in 2010.
To date, the Morocco national football team is the first to ever make the semi-finals of the World Cup in 2022.
How many teams qualify for the world cup?
African national football teams have 5 slots in the World Cup. During the 2022 World Cup, 5 of the 32 participating teams were African football teams: Cameroon, Morocco, Tunisia, Ghana, and Senegal.
FIFA voted on and passed an increase in the number of teams playing from 32 to 48. The 2026 World Cup will have 48 teams playing. More teams mean additional slots for all six regions.
Africa has been allocated an additional 4 slots, bringing the total to 9. Below are the other additional slots per region:
| Region | Slots in the World Cup |
| Asia | (+4) 8 slots |
| North, Central America, and the Caribbean | (+3) 6 slots |
| Europe | (+3) 16 slots |
| South America | (+2) 6 slots |
| Oceania | (+1) 2 slots |
