Africa Cup of Nations: Full history and format explained

The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly known as AFCON or CAN (Coupe d’Afrique des Nations), is the premier international football competition in Africa.

It is organised by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and is typically held every two years.

Since its inception in 1957 with just three participating nations (Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia), the tournament has grown into the continent’s most eagerly anticipated event.

Currently, 24 teams compete in the final tournament following a continental qualification phase, and the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations will be the 35th edition of the finals.

Here, Sports Mole explores the entire history of Africa’s leading national team tournament, examining its growth over the years, tournament format and past winners.

Historical development of the Africa Cup of Nations

The Africa Cup of Nations has evolved from a small, four-nation proposal into a major continental tournament featuring 24 teams.

Its origins date back to June 1956, when the CAF was proposed at a FIFA congress, leading to the inaugural tournament in February 1957 in Khartoum, Sudan.

The first edition had no qualification phase and was intended for four founding nations: Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia and South Africa; however, South Africa were disqualified for refusing to field a multi-racial team due to its apartheid policies.

Consequently, only two matches were played, with Egypt defeating Ethiopia to become the first champions; Egypt retained the title in 1959.

By 1962, the field expanded to require qualification rounds, and Ethiopia claimed the championship on home soil.

During the 1960s, Ghana emerged as a dominant force, winning titles in 1963 and 1965.

In 1968, the tournament format expanded to eight teams divided into two groups, a structure that remained until 1992.

The 1970s not only marked the start of the tournament’s consistent biennial cycle, but milestones of that period began with the 1970 edition in Sudan, which was the first to be televised.

The 1970s proved to be a decade of competitive parity, with six different nations — Sudan, Congo-Brazzaville, Zaire, Morocco, Ghana and Nigeria — lifting the trophy.

Notably, Zaire’s 1974 victory against Zambia involved the only replayed final in history and saw Mulamba Ndaye set an unmatched record of nine goals in a single tournament.

Cameroon’s consistency defined the 1980s, as the nation reached three consecutive finals, winning in 1984 and 1988.

Nigeria also captured their first title in 1980, while Algeria grew into a contender, eventually winning in 1990.

The 1990s brought significant expansion and political shifts, with the tournament growing to 12 teams in 1992, when the Ivory Coast won following a marathon penalty shootout.

In 1994, Nigeria won their second title, defeating a Zambian team rebuilding after a tragic plane crash.

A major historical turning point occurred in 1996 when South Africa, fresh from the end of apartheid, hosted and won the expanded 16-team tournament.

The 2000s began with Cameroon winning back-to-back titles in 2000 and 2002; however, the latter half of the decade belonged to Egypt.

Hosting in 2006, Egypt began an unprecedented era of dominance, winning three consecutive tournaments (2006, 2008 and 2010) to extend their record to seven continental titles.

During this period, the Pharaohs also set records for unbeaten streaks in the competition.

The 2010s brought several significant structural changes to the Cup of Nations, the first of which was moving to odd-numbered years — starting from 2013 — to avoid clashing with the World Cup.

The transition resulted in tournaments being held in both 2012 (won by Zambia) and 2013 (won by Nigeria).

Recent history has seen further expansion of the competition, with the presidency of Ahmad Ahmad marking a shift from 16 to 24 teams, initially shifting to the summer months.

The 24-team expanded AFCON 2019, held in Egypt, was won by Algeria, followed by Senegal winning their first title in the delayed 2021 edition held in 2022.

Despite the intention to move to summer dates, climate concerns and conflicts with the new Club World Cup have forced recent and upcoming editions (2023 and 2025) back to the Northern Hemisphere winter months.

The tournament is now navigating complex scheduling challenges, with the forthcoming 2025 edition set to begin in late December.

Africa Cup of Nations: History of the tournament format

The Africa Cup of Nations has undergone lots of structural changes since its inception, evolving from a modest regional gathering into a massive continental event.

Beginning in 1957 with a simple knockout bracket featuring only three nations — Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia — the tournament quickly recognised the need for expansion, introducing a qualification phase and a four-team final round by 1962.

A significant period of stability was established in 1968, when the competition standardised its format to include eight teams divided into two round-robin groups while simultaneously adopting the biennial schedule that characterised the event for decades.

The 1990s ushered in a new era of rapid growth, starting with the 1992 expansion to 12 teams, which necessitated the introduction of a quarter-final stage.

Just four years later, in 1996, the tournament expanded further to a 16-team structure comprising four groups, a popular format that provided competitive balance for over 20 years.

Moving into the modern era, CAF implemented critical scheduling adjustments, most notably shifting the event to odd-numbered years in 2013 to prevent conflicts with the World Cup calendar.

The most recent significant evolution occurred in 2019 when the field was increased to 24 teams, a move designed to accommodate the growing depth of African football.

While administrators attempted to permanently move the tournament to the Northern Hemisphere summer in 2017 to align with European league schedules, persistent challenges regarding African climatic conditions and the introduction of the Club World Cup have forced recent and upcoming editions, such as those in 2023 and 2025, to revert to the winter months of January or December.

Explaining AFCON’s 24-team format

Distinct from the straightforward 16-team structure where only the top two sides from four groups progressed directly to the quarter-finals, the 24-team format introduces a more forgiving yet complex qualification route.

The participating nations are divided into six groups of four, but the pathway to the knockout stages is no longer reserved solely for the top two finishers.

Instead, the tournament now features an additional knockout layer known as the round of 16, which necessitates 16 teams advancing from the group phase.

Consequently, alongside the 12 group winners and runners-up, the four highest-ranked third-placed teams also secure a berth in the next round.

This modification implies that finishing third is no longer an automatic exit, keeping competitive hopes alive longer and adding significant tension to the final group matches as teams vie for those critical extra slots based on points and goal difference.

The change benefitted Ivory Coast at the previous tournament on home soil, when the Elephants won the tournament despite losing two of their three group-stage games, finishing third in Group A and sacking Jean-Louis Gasset mid-tournament.

Emerse Fae was appointed just before the knockout stage, and the Elephants secured wins over Senegal, Mali, DR Congo and Nigeria to claim the crown on home soil.

Africa Cup of Nations: Past winners

1950s & 1960s

1957: Egypt
1959: United Arab Republic (Egypt)
1962: Ethiopia
1963: Ghana
1965: Ghana
1968: Congo-Kinshasa (now DR Congo)

1970s

1970: Sudan
1972: Congo (Brazzaville)
1974: Zaire (now DR Congo)
1976: Morocco
1978: Ghana

1980s

1980: Nigeria
1982: Ghana
1984: Cameroon
1986: Egypt
1988: Cameroon

1990s

1990: Algeria
1992: Ivory Coast
1994: Nigeria
1996: South Africa
1998: Egypt

2000s

2000: Cameroon
2002: Cameroon
2004: Tunisia
2006: Egypt
2008: Egypt

2010s

2010: Egypt
2012: Zambia
2013: Nigeria
2015: Ivory Coast
2017: Cameroon
2019: Algeria

2020s

2021: Senegal
2023: Ivory Coast

Summary of Most Successful Nations

Egypt: 7 titles (1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2010)
Cameroon: 5 titles (1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2017)
Ghana: 4 titles (1963, 1965, 1978, 1982)
Nigeria: 3 titles (1980, 1994, 2013)
Ivory Coast: 3 titles (1992, 2015, 2023)

Africa Cup of Nations: Leading goalscorers

18 Goals

Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon) – The all-time record holder, scoring in six different tournaments (2000–2010).

14 Goals

Laurent Pokou (Ivory Coast) – Held the all-time record for 38 years until Eto'o broke it in 2008. Pokou famously scored five goals in a single match against Ethiopia in 1970.

13 Goals

Rashidi Yekini (Nigeria) – The Super Eagles' legendary striker and 1993 African Footballer of the Year.

12 Goals

Hassan El-Shazly (Egypt) – A prolific scorer for the Pharaohs in the 1960s and 70s, El-Shazly scored six goals in the 1963 tournament alone.

11 Goals

Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast)
Hossam Hassan (Egypt)
Patrick Mboma (Cameroon)

10 Goals

Kalusha Bwalya (Zambia)
Ndaye Mulamba (DR Congo/Zaire) – Holds the record for the most goals in a single tournament (9 goals in 1974).
Andre Ayew (Ghana)
Francileudo Santos (Tunisia)
Joel Tiehi (Ivory Coast)
Mengistu Worku (Ethiopia)