2021 Africa Cup of Nations

"2022 Africa Cup of Nations" redirects here. For the women's tournament, see 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations.

The 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (also referred to as AFCON 2021 or CAN 2021), known as the TotalEnergies 2021 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons,^[4] was the 33rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's football championship of Africa organised by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The tournament was hosted by Cameroon,^[5] and took place from 9 January to 6 February 2022.^[1]

2021 Africa Cup of Nations

Coupe d'Afrique des Nations 2021
Official logo
Tournament details
Host country	Cameroon
Dates	9 January – 6 February 2022[1]
Teams	24
Venue(s)	6 (in 5 host cities)
Final positions
Champions	Senegal (1st title)
Runners-up	Egypt
Third place	Cameroon
Fourth place	Burkina Faso
Tournament statistics
Matches played	52
Goals scored	100 (1.92 per match)
Top scorer(s)	Vincent Aboubakar (8 goals)
Best player(s)	Sadio Mané[2]
Best young player	Issa Kaboré[3]
Best goalkeeper	Édouard Mendy[2]
Fair play award	Senegal[2]
← 2019 2023 →

The tournament was originally scheduled to be played in June and July 2021. However, the CAF announced on 15 January 2020 that due to unfavourable climatic conditions during that period, the tournament had been rescheduled to be played between 9 January and 6 February 2021.^[6] On 30 June 2020, the CAF moved the tournament's dates for the second time to January 2022 following the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic across the continent, whilst retaining the name 2021 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship purposes.^[7]

Matches were played in six venues across five cities. Algeria were the defending champions, but were eliminated in the first round after finishing bottom of their group.^[8] Senegal won their first AFCON title after defeating Egypt in the final 4–2 on penalties, following a 0–0 draw after extra time.^[9]

Host selection

After the CAF Executive Committee meeting on 24 January 2014, it was announced that there were three official candidates for the 2021 edition:^[10]

Bids:

• Algeria
• Guinea
• Ivory Coast

Rejected bids:

• DR Congo
• Gabon
• Zambia

This list was different from the list of the host nation bids for both the 2019 and 2021 edition of the Cup of Nations as announced by CAF in November 2013, with Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon and Zambia also on the original list.^[11] All three official candidates also bid for hosting the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

The decision of the host country was postponed from early 2014 to grant each bidding country adequate time to receive the inspection delegation.^[10] After the final vote at the CAF Executive Committee meeting, on 20 September 2014, the CAF announced the hosts for the 2019, 2021 and 2023 AFCON tournaments: 2019 to Cameroon, 2021 to Ivory Coast, and 2023 to Guinea.^[12]

Host change

On 30 November 2018, CAF stripped Cameroon of hosting the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations because of delays in the construction of stadiums and other necessary infrastructure;^[13] it was relocated to Egypt.^[14] CAF President at the time, Ahmad Ahmad, said that Cameroon had agreed to host the 2021 tournament instead.^[15] Consequently, Ivory Coast, original hosts of 2021, will host the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, and Guinea, original hosts of 2023, will host the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.^[16][17] On 30 January 2019, the CAF President confirmed the timetable shift, after a meeting with Ivory Coast President, Alassane Ouattara, in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.^[18]

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic

The tournament was originally scheduled to take place between 9 January and 6 February 2021.^[19] The preliminary round and two matchdays of the qualifying group stage had already been played between 9 October and 19 November 2019. The third and fourth matchdays of the qualifying group stage, which were initially scheduled to take place from 23 to 31 March and 1 to 9 June 2020 respectively, were postponed and all remaining qualifying matches rescheduled due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa.^[20]

On 19 June 2020, the CAF stated it was undecided about when continental competitions would resume, and were prioritising new schedules for the 2019–20 CAF Champions League and the 2019–20 CAF Confederation Cup semi-finals, the postponed 2020 African Nations Championship and the 2020 Africa Women Cup of Nations, alongside the 2021 Africa Cup of Nation, as football competitions across the continent had been postponed, cancelled or suspended.^[21]

On 30 June 2020, however, the CAF announced the rescheduling of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations to January 2022 "after consultation with stakeholders and taking into consideration the current global situation" according to a published statement, with new dates to be announced at a later date.^[22] Subsequently, other continental competitions and events to be held were rescheduled or cancelled, including new dates for the remaining AFCON qualifiers, which were now to be completed by March 2021.^[23] On 31 March 2021, it was confirmed that the final tournament would take place from 9 January to 6 February 2022, exactly one year after its originally scheduled start date.^[1]

Qualification

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification

Qualified teams

The following teams qualified for the tournament.

Team	Method of qualification	Date of qualification	Finals appearance	Last appearance	Previous best performance	FIFA ranking at start of event
Cameroon	Hosts / Group F winners	8 January 2019	20th	2019	Winners (1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2017)	50
Senegal	Group I winners	15 November 2020	16th	2019	Runners-up (2002, 2019)	20
Algeria	Group H winners	16 November 2020	19th	2019	Winners (1990, 2019)	29
Mali	Group A winners	17 November 2020	12th	2019	Runners-up (1972)	53
Tunisia	Group J winners	17 November 2020	20th	2019	Winners (2004)	30
Burkina Faso	Group B winners	24 March 2021	12th	2017	Runners-up (2013)	60
Guinea	Group A runners-up	24 March 2021	13th	2019	Runners-up (1976)	81
Comoros	Group G runners-up	25 March 2021	1st	None	Debut	132
Gabon	Group D runners-up	25 March 2021	8th	2017	Quarter-finals (1996, 2012)	89
Gambia	Group D winners	25 March 2021	1st	None	Debut	150
Egypt	Group G winners	25 March 2021	25th	2019	Winners (1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2010)	45
Ghana	Group C winners	25 March 2021	23rd	2019	Winners (1963, 1965, 1978, 1982)	52
Equatorial Guinea	Group J runners-up	25 March 2021	3rd	2015	Fourth place (2015)	114
Zimbabwe	Group H runners-up	25 March 2021	5th	2019	Group stage (2004, 2006, 2017, 2019)	121
Ivory Coast	Group K winners	26 March 2021	24th	2019	Winners (1992, 2015)	56
Morocco	Group E winners	26 March 2021	18th	2019	Winners (1976)	28
Nigeria	Group L winners	27 March 2021	19th	2019	Winners (1980, 1994, 2013)	36
Sudan	Group C runners-up	28 March 2021	9th	2012	Winners (1970)	125
Malawi	Group B runners-up	29 March 2021	3rd	2010	Group stage (1984, 2010)	129
Ethiopia	Group K runners-up	30 March 2021	11th	2013	Winners (1962)	137
Mauritania	Group E runners-up	30 March 2021	2nd	2019	Group stage (2019)	103
Guinea-Bissau	Group I runners-up	30 March 2021	3rd	2019	Group stage (2017, 2019)	106
Cape Verde	Group F runners-up	30 March 2021	3rd	2015	Quarter-finals (2013)	73
Sierra Leone	Group L runners-up	15 June 2021	3rd	1996	Group stage (1994, 1996)	108

Format

A total of 24 teams competed in the final tournament. Only the hosts received an automatic qualification spot, with the other 23 teams qualifying through a qualification tournament. For the finals, the 24 teams were drawn into six groups of four teams. The teams in each group played a single round robin, and after the group stage, the top two teams from each group and the four highest ranked third-placed teams advanced to the round of 16. From then on the tournament proceeded with a knockout phase.

Match ball

CAF announced the official match ball named Toghu on 23 November 2021. It was made by English manufacturer Umbro.^[24]

Mascot

The mascot, "Mola", was unveiled on 17 May 2021, during a ceremony in Yaoundé. He was a lion and his kit bore resemblance to Cameroon's home colours, with words saying "Cameroon" with "2021" on the top and bottom of the kit.^[25]

Match officials

The following referees were chosen for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, with two referees from CONCACAF assigned. The list consists of 24 referees, 31 assistant referees and eight video assistant referees from 36 countries.^[26]

Referees

• Mustapha Ghorbal
• Hélder Martins Rodrigues de Carvalho
• Joshua Bondo
• Pacifique Ndabihawenimana
• Blaise Yuven Ngwa
• Mahmoud El Banna
• Amin Omar
• Bamlak Tessema Weyesa
• Daniel Nii Laryea
• Bakary Gassama
• Mario Escobar (CONCACAF)
• Peter Waweru
• Boubou Traore
• Dahane Beida
• Ahmad Imtehaz Heeralall
• Redouane Jiyed
• Jean-Jacques Ndala Ngambo
• Salima Mukansanga
• Maguette N'Diaye
• Issa Sy
• Bernard Camille
• Victor Gomes
• Sadok Selmi
• Janny Sikazwe

Assistant referees

• Abdelhak Etchiali
• Mokrane Gourari
• Jerson Emiliano dos Santos
• Seydou Tiama
• Elvis Guy Noupue Nguegoue
• Carine Atezambong Fomo
• Issa Yaya
• Soulaimane Almadine
• Mahmoud Ahmed Abouelregal
• Ahmed Hossam Taha
• Sidiki Sidibe
• Liban Abdourazak Ahmed
• Gilbert Cheruiyot
• Souru Phatsoane
• Attia Amsaaed
• Lionel Andrianantenaina
• Mustapha Akarkad
• Lahcen Azgaou
• Zakaria Brinsi
• Fatiha Jermoumi
• Arsenio Maringula
• Mahamadou Yahaya
• Samuel Pwadutakam
• Olivier Safari
• Djibril Camara
• El Hadj Malick Samba
• James Fredrick Emile
• Zakhele Siwela
• Mohammed Abdallah Ibrahim
• Khalil Hassani
• Dick Okello

Video assistant referees

• Lahlou Benbraham
• Mehdi Abid Charef
• Mahmoud Mohamed Ashour
• Fernando Guerrero (CONCACAF)
• Samir Guezzaz
• Adil Zourak
• Bouchra Karboubi
• Haythem Guirat

Draw

The final draw was originally scheduled to take place on 25 June 2021, but was postponed to 17 August 2021 due to logistical reasons relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[1][4][27] The 24 teams were divided into four groups of six each, with the four initial pots determined based on the August 2021 FIFA World Rankings (shown in parentheses), listed below. Cameroon and Algeria were automatically given the top two seeds as hosts and title holders, respectively.

Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3	Pot 4
Cameroon (54) (hosts)  Algeria (30) (title holders)  Senegal (21)  Tunisia (28)  Morocco (32)  Nigeria (34)	Egypt (46)  Ghana (52)  Ivory Coast (57)  Mali (60)  Burkina Faso (62)  Guinea (76)	Cape Verde (77)  Gabon (85)  Mauritania (100)  Sierra Leone (106)  Zimbabwe (108)  Guinea-Bissau (109)	Malawi (118)  Sudan (121)  Equatorial Guinea (132)  Comoros (133)  Ethiopia (137)  Gambia (148)

Venues

400km
250miles

5

4

3

2

1

  

Location of the host cities of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations

1

Yaoundé

2

Douala

3

Garoua

4

Bafoussam

5

Limbe

With the Africa Cup of Nations expanded from 16 to 24 teams, six venues were used across five Cameroonian cities.^[28] The six stadiums selected to host matches were the Olembe Stadium and Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, both in the capital Yaoundé, the Japoma Stadium in Douala, the Limbe Stadium in Limbe, the Kouekong Stadium in Bafoussam and the Roumde Adjia Stadium in Garoua.^[29] The opening match of the tournament and the final took place at the newly built 60,000 seater Olembe Stadium in Yaoundé.^[30]

City	Stadium	Capacity
Yaoundé	Olembe Stadium	60,000
	Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium	42,500
Douala	Japoma Stadium	50,000
Garoua	Roumdé Adjia Stadium	25,000
Bafoussam	Kouekong Stadium	20,000
Limbe	Limbe Stadium	20,000

Opening ceremony

Atmosphere before the start of the AFCON launch ceremonies.

The opening ceremony of the stadium began at 10:00 with the setting up of the animation groups and the cultural activities which lasted until 14:00.^[31] Guests and officials were set up until the start of the opening match at 17:00. Among the guests were members of Confederation of African Football (CAF), members of the diplomatic corps, presidents of legislative and judicial institutions, members of government including the president of COCAN 2021 and the presidents of CAF and FIFA.

The set-up of officials ended by 16:00 with the arrival of the presidents of Comoros and Cameroon. After the performance of the hymns, the opening speech was made by Patrice Motsepe, CAF's president followed by the solemn opening of the competition by the President of the Republic of Cameroon, Paul Biya, after which a cultural parade of about an hour took place.

A cultural interlude representing the four cultural areas of Cameroon was presented with five hundred young ambassadors and the mascot Mola who participated in the dance, the host artist, Fally Ipupa offered a performance.^[32] During this parade, a virtual lion appeared to viewers, this was set up by Belgian graphic designer Thibault Baras on an idea of the creative company lib.^[33] Made in augmented reality and turned on a game engine, this lion was sixteen meters long, eight meters high and weighed a ton.^[34][35]

After the match, which took place from 17:00 to 19:00, there was a fireworks display.

Squads

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations squads

Group stage

All times are local, WAT (UTC+1).

The top two teams of each group, along with the best four third-placed teams, advanced to the round of 16.

Tiebreakers

Teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria were applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Article 74):^[36]

1. Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
2. Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
3. Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
4. If more than two teams were tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, if two teams were still tied, all head-to-head criteria above were applied exclusively to these two teams;
5. Goal difference in all group matches;
6. Goals scored in all group matches;
7. Drawing of lots.

Group A

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Group A

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Cameroon (H)	3	2	1	0	7	3	+4	7	Advance to knockout stage
2	Burkina Faso	3	1	1	1	3	3	0	4[a]
3	Cape Verde	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4[a]
4	Ethiopia	3	0	1	2	2	6	−4	1

Source: CAF
(H) Hosts
Notes:

1. Head-to-head result: Cape Verde 0–1 Burkina Faso.

Cameroon	2–1	Burkina Faso
Aboubakar 40' (pen.), 45+3' (pen.)	Report	Sangaré 24'

9 January 2022 (2022-01-09)

17:00

Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé

Referee: Mustapha Ghorbal (Algeria)

Ethiopia	0–1	Cape Verde
	Report	J. Tavares 45+1'

9 January 2022 (2022-01-09)

20:00

Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé

Referee: Hélder Martins de Carvalho (Angola)

---

Cameroon	4–1	Ethiopia
Toko Ekambi 8', 68' Aboubakar 53', 55'	Report	Hotessa 4'

13 January 2022 (2022-01-13)

17:00

Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé

Referee: Jean Jacques Ndala Ngambo (DR Congo)

Cape Verde	0–1	Burkina Faso
	Report	Bandé 39'

13 January 2022 (2022-01-13)

20:00

Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé

Referee: Amin Omar (Egypt)

---

Cape Verde	1–1	Cameroon
Rodrigues 53'	Report	Aboubakar 39'

17 January 2022 (2022-01-17)

17:00

Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé

Referee: Sadok Selmi (Tunisia)

Burkina Faso	1–1	Ethiopia
Bayala 25'	Report	Kebede 52' (pen.)

17 January 2022 (2022-01-17)

17:00

Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam

Referee: Ahmad Heeralall (Mauritius)

Group B

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Group B

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Senegal	3	1	2	0	1	0	+1	5	Advance to knockout stage
2	Guinea	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4[a]
3	Malawi	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4[a]
4	Zimbabwe	3	1	0	2	3	4	−1	3

Source: CAF
Notes:

1. Head-to-head result: Guinea 1–0 Malawi.

Senegal	1–0	Zimbabwe
Mané 90+7' (pen.)	Report

10 January 2022 (2022-01-10)

14:00

Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam

Referee: Mario Escobar (Guatemala)

Guinea	1–0	Malawi
I. Sylla 35'	Report

10 January 2022 (2022-01-10)

17:00

Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam

Referee: Daniel Nii Laryea (Ghana)

---

Senegal	0–0	Guinea
	Report

14 January 2022 (2022-01-14)

14:00

Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam

Referee: Bamlak Tessema Weyesa (Ethiopia)

Malawi	2–1	Zimbabwe
Mhango 43', 58'	Report	Wadi 38'

14 January 2022 (2022-01-14)

17:00

Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam

Referee: Dahane Beida (Mauritania)

---

Malawi	0–0	Senegal
	Report

18 January 2022 (2022-01-18)

17:00

Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam

Referee: Blaise Yuven Ngwa (Cameroon)

Zimbabwe	2–1	Guinea
Musona 26' Mahachi 43'	Report	Keïta 49'

18 January 2022 (2022-01-18)

17:00

Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé

Referee: Salima Mukansanga (Rwanda)

Group C

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Group C

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Morocco	3	2	1	0	5	2	+3	7	Advance to knockout stage
2	Gabon	3	1	2	0	4	3	+1	5
3	Comoros	3	1	0	2	3	5	−2	3
4	Ghana	3	0	1	2	3	5	−2	1

Source: CAF

Morocco	1–0	Ghana
Boufal 83'	Report

10 January 2022 (2022-01-10)

17:00

Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé

Referee: Joshua Bondo (Botswana)

Comoros	0–1	Gabon
	Report	Boupendza 16'

10 January 2022 (2022-01-10)

20:00

Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé

Referee: Peter Waweru (Kenya)

---

Morocco	2–0	Comoros
Amallah 16' Aboukhlal 88'	Report

14 January 2022 (2022-01-14)

17:00

Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé

Referee: Sadok Selmi (Tunisia)

Gabon	1–1	Ghana
Allevinah 88'	Report	A. Ayew 18'

14 January 2022 (2022-01-14)

20:00

Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé

Referee: Lahlou Benbraham (Algeria)

---

Gabon	2–2	Morocco
Allevinah 21' Aguerd 81' (o.g.)	Report	Boufal 74' (pen.) Hakimi 84'

18 January 2022 (2022-01-18)

20:00

Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé

Referee: Dahane Beida (Mauritania)

Ghana	2–3	Comoros
Boakye 64' Djiku 77'	Report	Ben Nabouhane 4' Mogni 62', 85'

18 January 2022 (2022-01-18)

20:00

Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua

Referee: Boubou Traore (Mali)

Group D

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Group D

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Nigeria	3	3	0	0	6	1	+5	9	Advance to knockout stage
2	Egypt	3	2	0	1	2	1	+1	6
3	Sudan	3	0	1	2	1	4	−3	1
4	Guinea-Bissau	3	0	1	2	0	3	−3	1

Source: CAF

Nigeria	1–0	Egypt
Iheanacho 30'	Report

11 January 2022 (2022-01-11)

17:00

Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua

Referee: Bakary Gassama (Gambia)

Sudan	0–0	Guinea-Bissau
	Report

11 January 2022 (2022-01-11)

20:00

Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua

Referee: Issa Sy (Senegal)

---

Nigeria	3–1	Sudan
Chukwueze 3' Awoniyi 45' Simon 46'	Report	Khedr 70' (pen.)

15 January 2022 (2022-01-15)

17:00

Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua

Referee: Victor Gomes (South Africa)

Guinea-Bissau	0–1	Egypt
	Report	Salah 69'

15 January 2022 (2022-01-15)

20:00

Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua

Referee: Pacifique Ndabihawenimana (Burundi)

---

Guinea-Bissau	0–2	Nigeria
	Report	Sadiq 56' Troost-Ekong 75'

19 January 2022 (2022-01-19)

20:00

Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua

Referee: Peter Waweru (Kenya)

Egypt	1–0	Sudan
Abdelmonem 35'	Report

19 January 2022 (2022-01-19)

20:00

Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé

Referee: Joshua Bondo (Botswana)

Group E

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Group E

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Ivory Coast	3	2	1	0	6	3	+3	7	Advance to knockout stage
2	Equatorial Guinea	3	2	0	1	2	1	+1	6
3	Sierra Leone	3	0	2	1	2	3	−1	2
4	Algeria	3	0	1	2	1	4	−3	1

Source: CAF

Algeria	0–0	Sierra Leone
	Report

11 January 2022 (2022-01-11)

14:00

Japoma Stadium, Douala

Referee: Ahmad Imetehaz Heeralall (Mauritius)

Equatorial Guinea	0–1	Ivory Coast
	Report	Gradel 5'

12 January 2022 (2022-01-12)

20:00

Japoma Stadium, Douala

Referee: Redouane Jiyed (Morocco)

---

Ivory Coast	2–2	Sierra Leone
Haller 25' Pépé 65'	Report	Mu. Kamara 55' A. Kamara 90+3'

16 January 2022 (2022-01-16)

17:00

Japoma Stadium, Douala

Referee: Maguette N'Diaye (Senegal)

Algeria	0–1	Equatorial Guinea
	Report	Esteban 70'

16 January 2022 (2022-01-16)

20:00

Japoma Stadium, Douala

Referee: Mario Escobar (Guatemala)

---

Ivory Coast	3–1	Algeria
Kessié 22' I. Sangaré 39' Pépé 54'	Report	Bendebka 73'

20 January 2022 (2022-01-20)

17:00

Japoma Stadium, Douala

Referee: Victor Gomes (South Africa)

Sierra Leone	0–1	Equatorial Guinea
	Report	Ganet 38'

20 January 2022 (2022-01-20)

17:00

Limbe Stadium, Limbe

Referee: Mohamed Marouf Eid Mansour (Egypt)

Group F

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Group F

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Mali	3	2	1	0	4	1	+3	7	Advance to knockout stage
2	Gambia	3	2	1	0	3	1	+2	7
3	Tunisia	3	1	0	2	4	2	+2	3
4	Mauritania	3	0	0	3	0	7	−7	0

Source: CAF

Tunisia	0–1	Mali
	Report	Koné 48' (pen.)

12 January 2022 (2022-01-12)

14:00

Limbe Stadium, Limbe

Referee: Janny Sikazwe (Zambia)

Mauritania	0–1	Gambia
	Report	A. Jallow 10'

12 January 2022 (2022-01-12)

17:45^{[note 1]}

Limbe Stadium, Limbe

Referee: Mustapha Ghorbal (Algeria)

---

Gambia	1–1	Mali
Mu. Barrow 90' (pen.)	Report	Koné 79' (pen.)

16 January 2022 (2022-01-16)

14:00

Limbe Stadium, Limbe

Referee: Samir Guezzaz (Morocco)

Tunisia	4–0	Mauritania
Mathlouthi 4' Khazri 9', 64' Jaziri 66'	Report

16 January 2022 (2022-01-16)

17:00

Limbe Stadium, Limbe

Referee: Mahmoud El Banna (Egypt)

---

Gambia	1–0	Tunisia
A. Jallow 90+3'	Report

20 January 2022 (2022-01-20)

20:00

Limbe Stadium, Limbe

Referee: Fernando Guerrero (Mexico)

Mali	2–0	Mauritania
Haïdara 2' Koné 49' (pen.)	Report

20 January 2022 (2022-01-20)

20:00

Japoma Stadium, Douala

Referee: Bernard Camille (Seychelles)

Ranking of third-placed teams

Pos	Grp	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	A	Cape Verde	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4	Advance to knockout stage
1	B	Malawi	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4
3	F	Tunisia	3	1	0	2	4	2	+2	3
4	C	Comoros	3	1	0	2	3	5	−2	3
5	E	Sierra Leone	3	0	2	1	2	3	−1	2
6	D	Sudan	3	0	1	2	1	4	−3	1

Source: CAF
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Drawing of lots.

Combinations of matches in the round of 16

The specific match-ups involving the third-placed teams depended on which four third-placed teams qualified for the round of 16:

  Combination according to the four qualified teams

Third-placed teams qualify from groups							1A vs	1B vs	1C vs	1D vs
A	B	C	D				3C	3D	3A	3B
A	B	C		E			3C	3A	3B	3E
A	B	C			F		3C	3A	3B	3F
A	B		D	E			3D	3A	3B	3E
A	B		D		F		3D	3A	3B	3F
A	B			E	F		3E	3A	3B	3F
A		C	D	E			3C	3D	3A	3E
A		C	D		F		3C	3D	3A	3F
A		C		E	F		3C	3A	3F	3E
A			D	E	F		3D	3A	3F	3E
	B	C	D	E			3C	3D	3B	3E
	B	C	D		F		3C	3D	3B	3F
	B	C		E	F		3E	3C	3B	3F
	B		D	E	F		3E	3D	3B	3F
		C	D	E	F		3C	3D	3F	3E

Knockout stage

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations knockout stage

In the knockout stage, extra time and a penalty shoot-out were used to decide the winner if necessary, except for the third place match, where a direct penalty shoot-out, without any extra time, was used to decide the winner if necessary (Regulations Article 75).

Bracket

Round of 16

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

23 January – Limbe

Burkina Faso (p)

1 (7)

29 January – Garoua

Gabon

1 (6)

Burkina Faso

1

23 January – Garoua

Tunisia

0

Nigeria

0

2 February – Yaoundé (Ahidjo)

Tunisia

1

Burkina Faso

1

25 January – Bafoussam

Senegal

3

Senegal

2

30 January – Yaoundé (Ahidjo)

Cape Verde

0

Senegal

3

26 January – Limbe

Equatorial Guinea

1

Mali

0 (5)

6 February – Yaoundé (Olembe)

Equatorial Guinea (p)

0 (6)

Senegal (p)

0 (4)

24 January – Bafoussam

Egypt

0 (2)

Guinea

0

29 January – Douala

Gambia

1

Gambia

0

24 January – Yaoundé (Olembe)

Cameroon

2

Cameroon

2

3 February – Yaoundé (Olembe)

Comoros

1

Cameroon

0 (1)

26 January – Douala

Egypt (p)

0 (3)

Third place play-off

Ivory Coast

0 (4)

30 January – Yaoundé (Ahidjo)

5 February – Yaoundé (Ahidjo)

Egypt (p)

0 (5)

Egypt (a.e.t.)

2

Burkina Faso

3 (3)

25 January – Yaoundé (Ahidjo)

Morocco

1

Cameroon (p)

3 (5)

Morocco

2

Malawi

1

Round of 16

Burkina Faso	1–1 (a.e.t.)	Gabon
B. Traoré 28'	Report	Guira 90+1' (o.g.)
Penalties
Kaboré S. Ouattara E. Tapsoba Simporé Yago Guira Konaté A. Tapsoba I. Ouédraogo	7–6	Bouanga Méyé Boupendza Kanga Biyogo Poko Ecuele Manga Ameka N'Gakoutou Palun

23 January 2022 (2022-01-23)

17:00

Limbe Stadium, Limbe

Referee: Redouane Jiyed (Morocco)

---

Nigeria	0–1	Tunisia
	Report	Msakni 47'

23 January 2022 (2022-01-23)

20:00

Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua

Referee: Maguette N'Diaye (Senegal)

---

Guinea	0–1	Gambia
	Report	Mu. Barrow 71'

24 January 2022 (2022-01-24)

17:00

Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam

Referee: Amin Omar (Egypt)

---

Cameroon	2–1	Comoros
Toko Ekambi 29' Aboubakar 70'	Report	Y. M'Changama 81'

24 January 2022 (2022-01-24)

20:00

Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé

Referee: Bamlak Tessema Weyesa (Ethiopia)

---

Senegal	2–0	Cape Verde
Mané 63' B. Dieng 90+2'	Report

25 January 2022 (2022-01-25)

17:00

Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam

Referee: Lahlou Benbraham (Algeria)

---

Morocco	2–1	Malawi
En-Nesyri 45+2' Hakimi 70'	Report	Mhango 7'

25 January 2022 (2022-01-25)

20:00

Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaoundé

Referee: Pacifique Ndabihawenimana (Burundi)

---

Ivory Coast	0–0 (a.e.t.)	Egypt
	Report
Penalties
Pépé I. Sangaré Bailly Cornet Zaha	4–5	Zizo El Solia Kamal Abdelmonem Salah

26 January 2022 (2022-01-26)

17:00

Japoma Stadium, Douala

Referee: Jean Jacques Ndala Ngambo (DR Congo)

---

Mali	0–0 (a.e.t.)	Equatorial Guinea
	Report
Penalties
A. N. Traoré Djenepo M. Haïdara Hama. Traoré Touré Dieng Camara Sacko	5–6	E. Nsue Belima Akapo Buyla Ganet Coco Salvador Eneme

26 January 2022 (2022-01-26)

20:00

Limbe Stadium, Limbe

Referee: Bakary Gassama (Gambia)

Quarter-finals

Gambia	0–2	Cameroon
	Report	Toko Ekambi 50', 57'

29 January 2022 (2022-01-29)

17:00

Japoma Stadium, Douala

Attendance: 36,259^[37]

Referee: Pacifique Ndabihawenimana (Burundi)

---

Burkina Faso	1–0	Tunisia
Da. Ouattara 45+3'	Report

29 January 2022 (2022-01-29)

20:00

Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua

Referee: Joshua Bondo (Botswana)

---

Egypt	2–1 (a.e.t.)	Morocco
Salah 53' Trézéguet 100'	Report	Boufal 7' (pen.)

30 January 2022 (2022-01-30)

16:00^{[note 2]}

Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaoundé^{[note 3]}

Referee: Maguette N'Diaye (Senegal)

---

Senegal	3–1	Equatorial Guinea
Diédhiou 28' Kouyaté 68' I. Sarr 79'	Report	Buyla 57'

30 January 2022 (2022-01-30)

20:00

Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaoundé^{[note 4]}

Referee: Victor Gomes (South Africa)

Semi-finals

Burkina Faso	1–3	Senegal
Touré 82'	Report	A. Diallo 70' I. Gueye 76' Mané 87'

2 February 2022 (2022-02-02)

20:00

Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaoundé^{[note 4]}

Referee: Bamlak Tessema Weyesa (Ethiopia)

---

Cameroon	0–0 (a.e.t.)	Egypt
	Report
Penalties
Aboubakar Moukoudi Léa Siliki N'Jie	1–3	Zizo Abdelmonem Lasheen

3 February 2022 (2022-02-03)

20:00

Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé

Attendance: 24,371^[43]

Referee: Bakary Gassama (Gambia)

Third place play-off

Burkina Faso	3–3	Cameroon
Yago 24' A. Onana 43' (o.g.) Dj. Ouattara 49'	Report	Bahoken 71' Aboubakar 85', 87'
Penalties
Kaboré S. Ouattara Touré Yago	3–5	Aboubakar Ngamaleu Toko Ekambi Kunde Oyongo

5 February 2022 (2022-02-05)

20:00^{[note 5]}

Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaoundé

Referee: Redouane Jiyed (Morocco)

Final

Main article: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations final

Senegal	0–0 (a.e.t.)	Egypt
	Report
Penalties
Koulibaly A. Diallo B. Sarr B. Dieng Mané	4–2	Zizo Abdelmonem Mar. Hamdy Lasheen

6 February 2022 (2022-02-06)

20:00

Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé

Attendance: 48,000

Referee: Victor Gomes (South Africa)

Statistics

Goalscorers

There were 100 goals scored in 52 matches, for an average of 1.92 goals per match.

8 goals

• Vincent Aboubakar

5 goals

• Karl Toko Ekambi

3 goals

• Gabadinho Mhango
• Ibrahima Koné
• Sofiane Boufal
• Sadio Mané

2 goals

• Ahmed Mogni
• Mohamed Salah
• Jim Allevinah
• Musa Barrow
• Ablie Jallow
• Nicolas Pépé
• Achraf Hakimi
• Wahbi Khazri

1 goal

• Sofiane Bendebka
• Hassane Bandé
• Cyrille Bayala
• Dango Ouattara
• Djibril Ouattara
• Gustavo Sangaré
• Blati Touré
• Bertrand Traoré
• Steeve Yago
• Stéphane Bahoken
• Garry Rodrigues
• Júlio Tavares
• Youssouf M'Changama
• El Fardou Ben Nabouhane
• Mohamed Abdelmonem
• Trézéguet
• Jannick Buyla
• Pablo Ganet
• Esteban Obiang
• Dawa Hotessa
• Getaneh Kebede
• Aaron Boupendza
• André Ayew
• Richmond Boakye
• Alexander Djiku
• Naby Keïta
• Issiaga Sylla
• Max Gradel
• Sébastien Haller
• Franck Kessié
• Ibrahim Sangaré
• Massadio Haïdara
• Zakaria Aboukhlal
• Selim Amallah
• Youssef En-Nesyri
• Taiwo Awoniyi
• Samuel Chukwueze
• Kelechi Iheanacho
• Umar Sadiq
• Moses Simon
• William Troost-Ekong
• Abdou Diallo
• Famara Diédhiou
• Bamba Dieng
• Idrissa Gueye
• Cheikhou Kouyaté
• Ismaïla Sarr
• Alhaji Kamara
• Musa Noah Kamara
• Walieldin Khedr
• Seifeddine Jaziri
• Hamza Mathlouthi
• Youssef Msakni
• Kudakwashe Mahachi
• Knowledge Musona
• Ishmael Wadi

1 own goal

• Adama Guira (against Gabon)
• André Onana (against Burkina Faso)
• Nayef Aguerd (against Gabon)

Broadcasting

Below is the list of the 2021 AFCON broadcasting rights:

Territory	Rights holder(s)	Ref.
Algeria	EPTV
France	beIN Sports
MENA	beIN Sports
Central America	ESPN
Caribbean	ESPN
South America	ESPN
World	CAF TV (YouTube)

Controversies

Tunisia vs. Mali refereeing

Mondher Kebaier and Jalel Kadri protesting against referee Janny Sikazwe after the controversy during the match against Mali at 2021 Afcon.

The match between Tunisia and Mali, the first meeting of Group F, was not played to completion. Zambian referee Janny Sikazwe initially whistled the end of the match in the 86th minute before changing his mind, warned by his assistant referee and the protests of the Tunisian players. He then signaled the end of the game in the 90th minute, seconds from the end of regulation time,^[45] just as the assistant referee was about to announce added time. In front of the furious Tunisians, the refereeing quartet had to leave the field under police escort.

Given the extent of the controversy, the resumption of the match, to play the remaining additional time, was announced. However, the Tunisian team refused to resume the match, claiming that the players were already in the showers, or out of the stadium, therefore unfit to resume the game. The Malians having presented themselves on the lawn, the end of the match is whistled with only one team on the ground, the result of 1–0 being ratified later by CAF.^[46]

Later, it was reported by different media that the referee Janny Sikazwe had in fact suffered a sunstroke in the middle of the game, so much so that he was even taken to the hospital, from where the presence of the fourth referee on the pitch at the time of the attempt to restart the match.^[47] According to the Tunisian player Wahbi Khazri, the referee of the match "was no longer coherent", "the referee lost the thread of the match" specified the Tunisian captain. "He was no longer consistent in his choices and decisions. He was very hot."

Mauritanian national anthem

Before the second match of Group F between Mauritania and Gambia, the old Mauritanian national anthem was played three times; the stadium announcer said that the Mauritanian players would sing the anthem themselves,^{[citation needed]} but a third failed attempt was soon cut off after the old anthem of the country was played again.^[48]

Buea shooting

In Buea, in the Southwest Region of Cameroon, gunfire broke out between the Cameroon Armed Forces and gunmen. The shooting is believed to have been between members of the Cameroon Army, deployed in large numbers during the competition, and Ambazonian separatist fighters, this incident is part of the Anglophone Crisis that has been raging since 2017 in the Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon.^[49]

Cameroon fans crushed to death

Main article: Yaoundé stadium disaster

Before the fourth match in the knockout stage between hosts Cameroon and the Comoros, which took place on 24 January 2022 at the Olembe Stadium, Cameroonian fans were crushed in a surge at the entrance. Eight deaths were recorded: two women and four men, all in their thirties, in addition to two children.^[50][51]

The ministry indicated that about 50 people were injured in the incident, including two people with multiple injuries and two others with serious head injuries, and a baby was immediately transferred to the General Hospital in Yaoundé in a medically stable condition.^[52]

Relocation of matches from Japoma Stadium

Initially, Japoma Stadium in Douala was scheduled to host four matches in the knockout stage, in addition to six in the group stage. However, after the field was criticised by coaches and players alike during the group stage, the organisation committee decided mid-tournament to relocate all matches from Japoma Stadium to other stadiums such as Limbe Stadium and Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaoundé. Djamel Belmadi, coach of defending champions, Algeria, who left the tournament in the group stages, said that "It is not of a level permitting total fluidity and what we hope for from big tournaments like the African Cup of Nations".^[53]

Awards

The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament:

Man of the Competition	Sadio Mané	[2]
Golden Boot	Vincent Aboubakar (8 goals)	[2]
Best Goalkeeper	Édouard Mendy	[2]
Best Young Player	Issa Kaboré	[3]
Fair Play Award	Senegal	[2]

Best XI

Goalkeeper	Defenders	Midfielders	Forwards	Coach
Édouard Mendy	Achraf Hakimi Mohamed Abdelmonem Edmond Tapsoba Saliou Ciss	Mohamed Elneny Nampalys Mendy Blati Touré	Mohamed Salah Vincent Aboubakar Sadio Mané	Aliou Cissé

Source:^[54]

Final ranking

Matches that ended in extra time were counted as wins and defeats, while matches that ended in penalty shootout were counted as draws.

Results of the teams participating in the tournament

  Champion

  Runner-up

  Third place

  Fourth place

  Quarter-finals

  Round of 16

  Group stage

Pos.	Team	G	Pld	W	D	L	Pts	GF	GA	GD
1	Senegal	B	7	4	3	0	15	9	2	+7
2	Egypt	D	7	3	3	1	12	4	2	+2
3	Cameroon	A	7	4	3	0	15	14	7	+7
4	Burkina Faso	A	7	2	3	2	9	9	10	−1
Eliminated in the quarter-finals
5	Morocco	C	5	3	1	1	10	8	5	+3
6	Gambia	F	5	3	1	1	10	4	3	+1
7	Equatorial Guinea	E	5	2	1	2	7	3	4	−1
8	Tunisia	F	5	2	0	3	6	5	3	+2
Eliminated in the round of 16
9	Nigeria	D	4	3	0	1	9	6	2	+4
10	Ivory Coast	E	4	2	2	0	8	6	3	+3
11	Mali	F	4	2	2	0	8	4	1	+3
12	Gabon	C	4	1	3	0	6	5	4	+1
13	Malawi	B	4	1	1	2	4	3	4	−1
14	Guinea	B	4	1	1	2	4	2	3	−1
15	Cape Verde	A	4	1	1	2	4	2	4	−2
16	Comoros	C	4	1	0	3	3	4	7	−3
eliminated in the group stage
17	Zimbabwe	B	3	1	0	2	3	3	4	−1
18	Sierra Leone	E	3	0	2	1	2	2	3	−1
19	Ghana	C	3	0	1	2	1	3	5	−2
20	Algeria	E	3	0	1	2	1	1	4	−3
21	Sudan	D	3	0	1	2	1	1	4	−3
22	Guinea-Bissau	D	3	0	1	2	1	0	3	−3
23	Ethiopia	A	3	0	1	2	1	2	6	−4
24	Mauritania	F	3	0	0	3	0	0	7	−7

Notes

1. The Mauritania v Gambia match was originally scheduled to kick-off at 17:00, but was delayed to 17:45 due to timing issues in the Tunisia v Mali match.
2. The Egypt v Morocco match was originally scheduled to kick-off at 17:00, but was rescheduled to 16:00.
3. The match was originally due to be held at Olembe Stadium in Yaoundé, but was relocated due to the investigation into the Yaoundé stadium disaster.^[38][39][40]
4. The match was originally due to be held at Japoma Stadium in Douala, but was relocated.^[40][41][42]
5. The match was originally due to be held on 6 February 2022 at 17:00, but was rescheduled due to security and convenience reasons.^[44]

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54. @CAF_Online (7 February 2022). "Not your average players Here is the #TotalEnergiesAFCON2021 best XI #AFCON2021" (Tweet). Retrieved 7 February 2022 – via Twitter.

External links

• 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Organizing Committee (in French)