The thrill, the excitement, hard-flying tackles, showcase of cultural heritage and the unveiling of many latest dance steps across the continent. These are some of the uniqueness of the African Cup of Nations. While the qualifying games are tightly contested, the competition itself takes commitment, teamwork, tenacity, and doing something beyond ordinary to emerge victoriously. And although different teams have conquered the continent since the inception of the tournament in 1956, with even some able to boast of eras of outright domination. Yet, only a few of the latter can lay claim to winning the highly coveted trophy in recent years.
Thus, in this post, we will examine the top five of the best African Nations Cup wins of the new era. These include teams that have dominated the competition for most of the last two decades.
Let’s dive in!
Ivory Coast, 2015
Ivory Coast, also known as Cote-d-Ivoire, made history in the African Nations Cup just in recent years.
While they hosted the cup in the year 1984 but could only earn 5th place, the Ivorians came back full force in 1992. This time, the effort was fierce enough. And while scraping past Cameroon in the semifinals 3-1 on penalties after a goalless 0-0 draw AET, they eventually won the tournament in an 11-10 penalty shootout win over Senegal in the final.
Ivorians forged on and having hindered Ghana from earning the trophy in the past, alongside Egypt who defeated them in a 1-0 win in Angola 2011. They played against Ghana for the second time in the finals of 2015. They had to play with all grit and determination on their way to a 9-8 penalty shootout win in Equatorial Guinea to finally lift the Holy Grail for a team that has long been described as “The Golden Generation”.
Algeria, 2019
If this arrangement of the best wins is not to be based on past achievements and competition pedigree, Algeria also deserves an honourable mention. Unlike other countries who have won the trophy in the old era, Algeria won its first trophy in 1990 after suffering the ignominy of being trashed in the final by NIGERIANS with a 3-0 scoreline in 1980.
This time around in 1990, luck shined on their face. Playing host to the tournament, they returned the favour to Nigeria in an aggressive 1-0 final win on home soil.
Adding to that sweet first one in the finals of 1990, and going on to prove a formidable side in the finals of the subsequent AFCON they participated in afterwards. They won the cup again in 2019 by going past a hugely talented Senegal side boasting the like of Sadio Mane, in a hugely satisfying 1-0 win in Egypt.
Nigeria, 2013
The self-acclaimed giants of Africa have shown outstanding performances, both in the old and the new eras. Although the most populous African nation hasn’t won the trophy as many times as the likes of Cameroon and Egypt, they have shown enough dexterity on their way to numerous (many times unlucky) runners-ups and third place landings.
Nigeria has won two African Cup of Nations trophies (1990 till date), first in 1994 against Zambia in a 2-1 win. This is followed in quick succession, with losses in the finals of 1988 and 1990, to Cameroon and Algeria respectively in a 1-0 defeat each.
Then came 2013, just at a time when the Nations Cup was shifted to the odd-numbered years to prevent clashes with the World Cup, and their more illustrious Euro games counterpart, Nigeria won against Burkina Faso (first-time finalist) in a 1-0 win in South Africa.
Cameroon, 2017
If another giant is being talked about in the African Nations Cup asides Egypt, then, it is no doubt going to be Cameroon. Cameroon has shown face in many qualifications to be listed. They have also managed to win the cup two times consecutively in the years 2000 and 2002 and made it to the fourth place in the following year 2004.
After accumulating 5 trophies, the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon, made it the “Sixth Haven” as they conquered Egypt in the final of the year 2017 by defeating their opponents 2-1 to lift the trophy in Libreville, Gabon.
Egypt, 2006-2010
The Pharaohs are the true legends of the African Nations Cup. Note that they are one of the earliest partakers in the competition. Also, they have won more AFCON trophies than any other country in Africa. They have garnered a combined seven trophies in the African Nations Cup, and have emerged as runners-up on several occasions.
However, out of their seven trophies won, only four have been won in the new era. They notched the four trophies, setting an outstanding record in the African Cup of Nations. They are the only country to win the cup three times in a row in the new era. It is not a surprise as they have been performing well in the old era to cement a vast tournament pedigree. They came in massively for the trophy and won in the years 2006, 2008 and 2010, winning AFCON finals back-to-back against Ivory Coast, Cameroon and Ghana respectively. These happened after their 2-0 win against the first-time finalist (South Africa) in Burkina Faso in the year 1998.
Which teams do you think deserve a place above, and not included? Let’s hear your opinion!