The Africa Cup of Nations is the premier international football championship of Africa, first held in Khartoum, Sudan in February 1957 with three participating nations, Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia; Egypt won the inaugural final four goals to nil over Ethiopia. It is organized by the Confederation of African Football, founded on 8 February 1957 at the Grand Hotel in Khartoum by the football associations of Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia and South Africa, two days before the first tournament began. The tournament has been held every two years since 1968, moving to odd numbered years from 2013 onward.
Facts
Founding Year Founding DateDate of the sole semi-final of the inaugural 1957 tournament in Khartoum; the final followed on 16 February 1957. FrequencyBiennial since 1968, held in odd numbered years since 2013 1 Host HistorySudan hosted the inaugural 1957 tournament; hosting has since rotated among African nations, including Tunisia (1965, 2004), Ghana and Nigeria as co-hosts (2000), Mali (2002), Egypt (2006, 2019), Equatorial Guinea and Gabon as co-hosts (2012), Gabon (2017), Senegal (2022), Ivory Coast (2023) and Morocco (2025). 2 Frequency
Frequency (category)Biennial (Every Two Years) 1 Learn More
From Three Nations to a Continent: The Growth of the Africa Cup of Nations
This article records tradition as it has been passed down and reported. Its sources are not yet part of the atlas's verified catalogue.
A tournament that began with three teams playing a handful of matches in a single city has grown, over nearly seventy years, into African football's most watched event, expanding its qualification structure repeatedly as more national federations joined CAF and as the continent's football infrastructure matured. The tournament schedule itself changed along the way: after settling into a two year cycle from 1968 onward, the competition shifted its edition years from even to odd numbers starting in 2013, a calendar adjustment made to reduce scheduling conflicts with the FIFA World Cup, which falls on the even numbered years the Cup of Nations had previously shared.
That scheduling change is a small administrative detail with a real practical purpose behind it: it freed players who represent both a European club and an African national team from facing two major tournaments compressed into the same year, a conflict that had previously strained club release agreements every four years.
Africa Cup of Nations
Filter Results12 entries
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Administered By
Source CAF, Official History
Competitors Include
Source Ahmed Hassan (footballer, born 1975) (Wikipedia)
Source André Biyogo Poko (source article)
Source Carlos Kameni (Wikipedia)
Source Wikipedia, Didier Drogba
Source Gaël Bigirimana (source article)
Source Jean Makoun (Wikipedia)
Source Mame Biram Diouf (Wikipedia)
Source Marouane Chamakh (Wikipedia)
Source Wikipedia, Mohamed Salah
Source Ousmane Coulibaly (Wikipedia)
Source Victor Obinna (Wikipedia)
Source Wahbi Khazri (Wikipedia)
Features
Source CAF, Official History
Long-Form Articles
Source CAF, Official History
Sources
1. CAF, Official History
Confederation of African FootballIntroduction
The founding members are Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia and South Africa.
- In Category: Competitions
- Features: Association Football
- Long-Form Articles: From Three Nations to a Continent: The Growth of the Africa Cup of Nations
- Administered By: CAF (Confederation of African Football)
View the Source 2. Wikipedia, Africa Cup of Nations
Wikipedia, 1957 African Cup of Nations
WikipediaLead sectionQuote, Lead section
The competition took place between 10 and 16 February 1957.
Marouane Chamakh (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Marouane Chamakh, Lead section [competed-in]Quote, Competitors Include: Marouane Chamakh, Lead section [competed-in]
played in three Africa Cup of Nations tournaments
Carlos Kameni (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Carlos Kameni, Lead paragraph, careerQuote, Competitors Include: Carlos Kameni, Lead paragraph, career
Kameni represented the country in two World Cups and six Africa Cup of Nations tournaments
Mame Biram Diouf (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Mame Biram Diouf, Lead, international paragraphQuote, Competitors Include: Mame Biram Diouf, Lead, international paragraph
at the 2015 and 2017 Africa Cup of Nations
Wahbi Khazri (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Wahbi Khazri, Lead paragraph 3, TunisiaQuote, Competitors Include: Wahbi Khazri, Lead paragraph 3, Tunisia
He represented Tunisia at five Africa Cup of Nations tournaments
Victor Obinna (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Victor Obinna, Lead paragraph, competitionQuote, Competitors Include: Victor Obinna, Lead paragraph, competition
full international debut for Nigeria at the 2006 African Cup of Nations
Ahmed Hassan (footballer, born 1975) (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Ahmed Hassan (footballer, born 1975), Career sectionQuote, Competitors Include: Ahmed Hassan (footballer, born 1975), Career section
Hassan has played in eight Africa Cup of Nations tournaments for Egypt, winning the tournament four times, in 1998, 2006, 2008 and 2010
Jean Makoun (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Jean Makoun, International career, 2008 tournamentQuote, Competitors Include: Jean Makoun, International career, 2008 tournament
Makoun was named by Otto Pfister in Cameroon's squad for the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations in Ghana.
André Biyogo Poko (source article)
Competitors Include: André Biyogo Poko, Lead and international career textQuote, Competitors Include: André Biyogo Poko, Lead and international career text
He represented his country at the 2012 African Cup of Nations, during which Gabon, as hosts of the competition, reached the quarter-finals.
Ousmane Coulibaly (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Ousmane Coulibaly, Career sectionQuote, Competitors Include: Ousmane Coulibaly, Career section
Africa Cup of Nations bronze: 2013
Gaël Bigirimana (source article)
Competitors Include: Gaël Bigirimana, Lead, second paragraphQuote, Competitors Include: Gaël Bigirimana, Lead, second paragraph
He played at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
Wikipedia, Mohamed Salah
WikipediaCompetitors Include: Mohamed Salah, lead paragraph, competed-inQuote, Competitors Include: Mohamed Salah, lead paragraph, competed-in
Salah was named CAF African Footballer of the Year (2017 and 2018), BBC African Footballer of the Year (2017 and 2018), and was selected in the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament, 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament and the CAF Team of the Year on several occasions.
Wikipedia, Didier Drogba
WikipediaCompetitors Include: Didier Drogba, lead paragraph, competed-inQuote, Competitors Include: Didier Drogba, lead paragraph, competed-in
He led Ivory Coast to two Africa Cup of Nations finals in 2006 and 2012, though they lost on penalties on both occasions.
Essays About This Entity (1 essay)
The Body That Runs the Africa Cup of Nations Predates It by Two Days
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