The Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is the most prestigious football competition in Africa, contested by national teams and organized by the Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF). Since its inception in 1957, the tournament has seen numerous players leave their mark, with goals scored at this stage considered a great honor.
BEST World Cup Goals in History
Since the inception of the tournament in 1957, there have been several names who have left their mark as GOAL takes a look at the 10 all-time top goalscorers at the AFCON.
The competition’s format has changed over time, with the number of teams increasing from 3 in 1957 to 24 in 2019 after several expansions. Growing participation also led to the introduction of qualifying rounds in 1968, the same year that CAF decided to hold the tournament biennially.
The Africa Cup of Nations was first held in February 1957 in Khartoum, Sudan, where Egypt defeated the host nation in the final to win the Abdel Aziz Abdallah Salem Trophy, named after its donor, an Egyptian who was the first CAF president. That trophy was permanently awarded to Ghana in 1978 when it became the first country to win the tournament three times. The next trophy, known as the African Unity Cup, was awarded permanently to Cameroon in 2000 when that team claimed its third championship since 1978. In 2002 a new trophy called the Cup of Nations was introduced.
Beyond the boundaries of the playing fields, the Cup of Nations has been a conduit for the articulation of political values and ideas. Having inherited colonial institutions devoid of indigenous symbols of national identity, many independent African governments invested considerable economic and political capital into national football teams in order to elicit pride and build unity among their diverse populations. For example, with the enthusiastic support of Ghana’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana won the cup in 1963 and 1965.
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In winning the 1996 tournament at home, South Africa’s racially mixed team seemed to symbolize football’s power to bridge the gaping social and economic inequalities left by apartheid. In contrast, the Algerian government was unable to capitalize on Algeria’s victory in the 1990 Cup of Nations, as fans celebrated the team’s triumph in Algiers by chanting their support for the opposition Islamic Salvation Front.
Top Goalscorers
Here's a look at some of the most prolific goalscorers in the history of the Africa Cup of Nations:
Samuel Eto'o | Cameroon | 18 goals
By far the most prolific but not until the 2008 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, Samuel Eto'o won the tournament in 2000 and 2002.
Laurent Pokou | Ivory Coast | 14 goals
A two-time Golden Boot winner in 1968 and 1970, with a combined 14 goals from eight appearances in the back-to-back editions of the AFCON, including a five-goal haul in a game against Ethiopia.
Rashidi Yekini | Nigeria | 13 goals
Nigeria's Rashidi Yekini was the leading goalscorer in both the 1992 and 1994 Africa Cup of Nations, winning the tournament in 1994.
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Hassan El-Shazly | Egypt | 12 goals
The 1963 Africa Cup of Nations saw El-Shazly amass six goals. In addition, the Egypt international scored another six goals at the prestigious tournament.
Patrick Mboma | Cameroon | 11 goals
After winning a gold medal in the 2000 Sydney Olympics football final against Spain, he emerged as joint top scorer at both the 2022 and 2004 Africa Cup of Nations. Not to forget, Mboma helped Cameroon to the AFCON title in 2000 and 2002.
Hossam Hassan | Egypt | 11 goals
Apart from 11 goals as the tournament, Hassan won gold with Egypt in the 1986, 1998 and 2006 editions. Particularly, in the 1998 AFCON Cup, Hassan was joint top scorer with seven goals. It was then that he scored a hat-trick against Zambia and a brace in the semi-finals against hosts Burkina Faso.
Didier Drogba | Ivory Coast | 11 goals
The infamous former Chelsea forward ended up as runner-up up in both the 2006 and 2012 editions of the tournament where he scored thrice each. They were unable to exit their groups, but still each time Drogba dared them to dream.
Mengistu Worku | Ethiopia | 10 goals
Helping Ethiopia to the title in the 1962 Africa Cup of Nations, he contributed as the top scorer with three goals. Worku remains the country's highest goalscorer with 10 goals across the six editions he was part of.
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Ndaye Mulamba | DR Congo | 10 goals
Having 10 goals to his name at the tournament, Mulamba scored a record nine goals in a single edition in 1994. He completed the feat in just six games and inspired the then Zaire (now DR Congo) to the title, along with a brace against hosts Egypt in the semi-finals.
Kalusha Bwalya | Zambia | 10 goals
Popularly known as just "Kalusha", he was the top scorer in the next AFCON tournament with five goals and was subsequently nominated for the FIFA World Player of the Year award. Through an emotional tournament in 1994, the striker led his side to the final as captain. Fate had a role to play as Bwalya missed the flight in 1993 that crashed and killed numerous Zambian national team players.
Other Notable Facts
- Egypt are AFCON heritage.
- In a glittering era for African football, Abedi Ayew was one of the dazzling standout stars.
- Mane was the beating heart of Senegal’s first-ever AFCON triumph in 2022.
- A pressure penalty for the ages, it had the power to beat Mohamed Abou Gabal and send a nation into raptures.
- Egypt had a penalty shoot-out winning streak of six, winning every shoot-out since their 5-4 win to Cameroon in the 1986 final.
- In 2017, Egypt set a new record of 24 consecutive Africa Cup of Nations matches played without defeat, dating back to their last tournament appearance in 2010.
- During this run, Egypt also reached a record nine consecutive wins in AFCON matches after beating Ghana in the 2010 final, while becoming the first team to win three consecutive AFCON titles.
Africa Cup of Nations Winners
The table below provides a list of Africa Cup of Nations winners:
| Year | Winner | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|
| *Finals held in even-numbered years 1968-2012; held in odd-numbered years from 2013. | ||
| **Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 tournament was held in 2022. |
