|  African Cup of Nations 1996 official logo | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | South Africa | 
| Dates | 13 January – 3 February | 
| Teams | 15 | 
| Venue(s) | 4 (in 4 host cities) | 
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  South Africa (1st title) | 
| Runners-up | .svg.png.webp) Tunisia | 
| Third place | .svg.png.webp) Zambia | 
| Fourth place |  Ghana | 
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 29 | 
| Goals scored | 78 (2.69 per match) | 
| Attendance | 640,880 (22,099 per match) | 
| Top scorer(s) | .svg.png.webp) Kalusha Bwalya (5 goals) | 
| Best player(s) | .svg.png.webp) Kalusha Bwalya | 
The 1996 African Cup of Nations was the 20th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the football championship of Africa (CAF). It was hosted by South Africa, who replaced original hosts Kenya. The field expanded for the first time to 16 teams, split into four groups of four; the top two teams in each group advancing to the quarterfinals. However, Nigeria withdrew from the tournament at the final moment under pressure from then-dictator Sani Abacha, reducing the field to 15.[1] South Africa won its first championship, beating Tunisia in the final 2–0.[2]
Qualified teams

For full qualification see: 1996 African Cup of Nations qualification
| Team | Qualified as | Qualified on | Previous appearances in tournament[lower-alpha 1] | 
|---|---|---|---|
|  South Africa | Hosts | 0 (debut) | |
|  Nigeria | Holders | 10 April 1994 | 10 (1963, 1976, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994) | 
|  Gabon | Group 5 winners | 4 June 1995 | 1 (1994) | 
| .svg.png.webp) Zaire | Group 1 winners | 4 June 1995 | 9 (1965, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1988, 1992, 1994) | 
| .svg.png.webp) Zambia | Group 5 runners-up | 15 July 1995 | 7 (1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1992, 1994) | 
|  Algeria | Group 4 runners-up | 30 July 1995 | 8 (1968, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992) | 
|  Angola | Group 6 winners | 30 July 1995 | 0 (debut) | 
|  Burkina Faso | Group 7 winners | 30 July 1995 | 1 (1978) | 
|  Cameroon | Group 1 runners-up | 30 July 1995 | 8 (1970, 1972, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992) | 
| .svg.png.webp) Egypt | Group 4 winners | 30 July 1995 | 14 (1957, 1959, 1962, 1963, 1970, 1974, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994) | 
|  Ghana | Group 3 winners | 30 July 1995 | 10 (1963, 1965, 1968, 1970, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1992, 1994) | 
|  Ivory Coast | Group 7 runners-up | 30 July 1995 | 11 (1965, 1968, 1970, 1974, 1980, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994) | 
|  Liberia | Group 2 runners-up | 30 July 1995 | 0 (debut) | 
|  Mozambique | Group 6 runners-up | 30 July 1995 | 1 (1986) | 
|  Sierra Leone | Group 3 runners-up | 30 July 1995 | 1 (1994) | 
| .svg.png.webp) Tunisia | Group 2 winners | 30 July 1995 | 6 (1962, 1963, 1965, 1978, 1982, 1994) | 
- Notes
Squads
Venues
| Johannesburg | Durban | |
|---|---|---|
| FNB Stadium | Kings Park Stadium | |
|  | ||
| Capacity: 80,000 | Capacity: 52,000 | |
| Bloemfontein | Port Elizabeth | |
| Free State Stadium | EPRU Stadium | |
|  |  | |
| Capacity: 40,000 | Capacity: 33,852 | 
First round
Teams highlighted in green progress to the Quarter Finals.
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  South Africa (H) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage | 
| 2 |  Egypt | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 6 | |
| 3 |  Cameroon | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 4 | |
| 4 |  Angola | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 1 | 
(H) Hosts
| South Africa  | 3–0 |  Cameroon | 
|---|---|---|
| Masinga  15' Williams  37' Moshoeu  55' | 
| South Africa  | 1–0 |  Angola | 
|---|---|---|
| Williams  57' | 
| South Africa  | 0–1 |  Egypt | 
|---|---|---|
| El-Kass  7' | 
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | .svg.png.webp) Zambia | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 1 | +8 | 7 | Advance to knockout stage | 
| 2 |  Algeria | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 7 | |
| 3 |  Sierra Leone | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 | −5 | 3 | |
| 4 |  Burkina Faso | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 9 | −6 | 0 | 
| Sierra Leone  | 2–1 |  Burkina Faso | 
|---|---|---|
| Sessay  11' Kallon  89' | Ouédraogo  74' | 
| Algeria  | 2–0 |  Sierra Leone | 
|---|---|---|
| Meçabih  41', 63' | 
| Algeria  | 2–1 |  Burkina Faso | 
|---|---|---|
| Lounici  2' Dziri  75' | Zongo  83' | 
| Zambia .svg.png.webp) | 4–0 |  Sierra Leone | 
|---|---|---|
| K. Bwalya  2', 9', 84' Malitoli  87' | 
Group C
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Gabon | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 3 | Advance to knockout stage | 
| 2 | .svg.png.webp) Zaire | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | |
| 3 |  Liberia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 3 | 
 Nigeria withdrew, so their three matches were canceled.
 Nigeria withdrew, so their three matches were canceled.
Group D
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Ghana | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 9 | Advance to knockout stage | 
| 2 | .svg.png.webp) Tunisia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 4 | |
| 3 |  Ivory Coast | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | −3 | 3 | |
| 4 |  Mozambique | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 1 | 
| Ghana  | 2–0 |  Ivory Coast | 
|---|---|---|
| Yeboah  20' Pelé  70' | 
| Tunisia .svg.png.webp) | 1–1 |  Mozambique | 
|---|---|---|
| Berkhissa  24' | Bucuane  4' | 
| Ghana  | 2–1 | .svg.png.webp) Tunisia | 
|---|---|---|
| Pelé  50' Akonnor  77' | Ben Younes  72' | 
| Ivory Coast  | 1–0 |  Mozambique | 
|---|---|---|
| Tiéhi  32' | 
| Tunisia .svg.png.webp) | 3–1 |  Ivory Coast | 
|---|---|---|
| Ben Younes  32', 38' Ben Hassen  48' | M. Traoré  84' | 
| Ghana  | 2–0 |  Mozambique | 
|---|---|---|
| Pelé  42' Aboagye  68' | 
Knockout stage
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 27 January – Johannesburg | ||||||||||
|  South Africa | 2 | |||||||||
| 31 January – Johannesburg | ||||||||||
|  Algeria | 1 | |||||||||
|  South Africa | 3 | |||||||||
| 28 January – Port Elizabeth | ||||||||||
|  Ghana | 0 | |||||||||
|  Ghana | 1 | |||||||||
| 3 February – Johannesburg | ||||||||||
| .svg.png.webp) Zaire | 0 | |||||||||
|  South Africa | 2 | |||||||||
| 27 January – Bloemfontein | ||||||||||
| .svg.png.webp) Tunisia | 0 | |||||||||
| .svg.png.webp) Zambia | 3 | |||||||||
| 31 January – Durban | ||||||||||
|  Egypt | 1 | |||||||||
| .svg.png.webp) Zambia | 2 | |||||||||
| 28 January – Durban | ||||||||||
| .svg.png.webp) Tunisia | 4 | Third place | ||||||||
|  Gabon | 1 (1) | |||||||||
| 3 February – Johannesburg | ||||||||||
| .svg.png.webp) Tunisia (pen.) | 1 (4) | |||||||||
|  Ghana | 0 | |||||||||
| .svg.png.webp) Zambia | 1 | |||||||||
Quarterfinals
| Gabon  | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | .svg.png.webp) Tunisia | 
|---|---|---|
| Mackaya  16' | Report | Baya  10' | 
| Penalties | ||
| Mackaya   Kassa-Ngoma   Bekogo-Zogo  | 1–4 |  Sellimi  Fekhi  Ben Slimane  El Ouaer | 
Semifinals
| South Africa  | 3–0 |  Ghana | 
|---|---|---|
| Moshoeu  22', 87' Bartlett  46' | 
Third place match
Final
| South Africa  | 2–0 | .svg.png.webp) Tunisia | 
|---|---|---|
| Williams  73', 75' | 
Scorers
5 goals
4 goals
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
 Billel Dziri Billel Dziri
 Tarek Lazizi Tarek Lazizi
 Khaled Lounici Khaled Lounici
 Joni Joni
 Paulão Paulão
 Aboubakari Ouédraogo Aboubakari Ouédraogo
 Youssouf Traoré Youssouf Traoré
 Boureima Zongo Boureima Zongo
 Georges Mouyémé Georges Mouyémé
 Alphonse Tchami Alphonse Tchami
 Joël Tiéhi Joël Tiéhi
 Moussa Traoré Moussa Traoré
 Samir Ibrahim Samir Ibrahim
 Ali Maher Ali Maher
 Aurelien Bekogo Aurelien Bekogo
 Guy Nzeng Guy Nzeng
 Felix Aboagye Felix Aboagye
 Charles Akonnor Charles Akonnor
 Kwame Ayew Kwame Ayew
 Mass Sarr Jr. Mass Sarr Jr.
 Kelvin Sebwe Kelvin Sebwe
 Tico-Tico Tico-Tico
 Mohamed Kallon Mohamed Kallon
 John Gbassay Sessay John Gbassay Sessay
 Shaun Bartlett Shaun Bartlett
 Mark Fish Mark Fish
 Phil Masinga Phil Masinga
.svg.png.webp) Abdelkader Ben Hassen Abdelkader Ben Hassen
.svg.png.webp) Hédi Berkhissa Hédi Berkhissa
.svg.png.webp) Kaies Ghodhbane Kaies Ghodhbane
.svg.png.webp) Liombi Essende Liombi Essende
.svg.png.webp) Roger Lukaku Roger Lukaku
.svg.png.webp) Elijah Litana Elijah Litana
.svg.png.webp) Hillary Makasa Hillary Makasa
.svg.png.webp) Vincent Mutale Vincent Mutale
Own goal
 Hélder Vicente (for Cameroon) Hélder Vicente (for Cameroon)
CAF Team of the Tournament
Goalkeeper
Defenders
Midfielders
Forwards
References
- ↑ "Nigerian players back boycott of finals". Independent.co.uk. 10 January 1996. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022.
- ↑ "'South Africa's Rugby World Cup win was big – but this was even bigger'" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
External links



