Africa Cup of Nations All Time Winners List (Since 1957)
Which country is number one in African football? Who is the best AFCON of all time? Have South Africa ever won the AFCON? How many times has Ghana won the AFCON? We clarify all these questions here. Find the AFCON (Africa Cup Of Nations) Winners List By Year.
Africa Cup Of Nations Past Winners
Egypt prevailed in the inaugural edition of the AFCON. They appeared as the United Arab Republic during the initial stage of the competition back in the 50s-60s. So far, 15 different countries have lifted the title in this competition. Ivory Coast is the current holder as they won the latest 34th edition. So far, 12 finals have gone into the extra times. Meanwhile, the tie-breaker decided as many as 9 finals. South Africa won their solitary title in 1996 while they lost another final 2 years later. Egypt’s capital city Cairo has hosted the most number of decisive games so far. There was no specific final game for the 1959 and 1976 editions. Instead, there used to be a final round-robin clash of multiple teams. Zaire beat Zambia in the 1974 final which was the only final that went into a replay game.
AFCON Winners List By Year
| Year | Champion | Runners-Up | Result | Venue |
| 2023 | Ivory Coast | Nigeria | 2-1 | Abidjan, Ivory Coast |
| 2021 | Senegal | Egypt | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (4–2 p) | Yaoundé, Cameroon |
| 2019 | Algeria | Senegal | 1-0 | Cairo, Egypt |
| 2017 | Cameroon | Egypt | 2-1 | Libreville, Gabo |
| 2015 | Ivory Coast | Ghana | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (9–8 p) | Bata, Equatorial Guinea |
| 2013 | Nigeria | Burkina Faso | 1-0 | Johannesburg, South Africa |
| 2012 | Zambia | Ivory Coast | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (8–7 p) | Libreville, Gabon |
| 2010 | Egypt | Ghana | 1-0 | Luanda, Angola |
| 2008 | Egypt | Cameroon | 1-0 | Accra, Ghana |
| 2006 | Egypt | Ivory Coast | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (4–2 p) | Cairo, Egypt |
| 2004 | Tunisia | Morocco | 2-1 | Radès, Tunisia |
| 2002 | Cameroon | Senegal | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (3–2 p) | Bamako, Mali |
| 2000 | Cameroon | Nigeria | 2-2 (a.e.t.) (4–3 p) | Lagos, Nigeria |
| 1998 | Egypt | South Africa | 2-0 | Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso |
| 1996 | South Africa | Tunisia | 2-0 | Johannesburg, South Africa |
| 1994 | Nigeria | Zambia | 2-1 | Tunis, Tunisia |
| 1992 | Ivory Coast | Ghana | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (11–10 p) | Dakar, Senegal |
| 1990 | Algeria | Nigeria | 1-0 | Algiers, Algeria |
| 1988 | Cameroon | Nigeria | 1-0 | Casablanca, Morocco |
| 1986 | Egypt | Cameroon | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (5-4 p) | Cairo, Egypt |
| 1984 | Cameroon | Nigeria | 3-1 | Abidjan, Ivory Coast |
| 1982 | Ghana | Libya | 1-1 (a.e.t.) (7–6 p) | Tripoli, Libya |
| 1980 | Nigeria | Algeria | 3-0 | Lagos, Nigeria |
| 1978 | Ghana | Uganda | 2-0 | Accra, Ghana |
| 1976 | Morocco | Guinea | 1-1 (Final Round-Robin) | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
| 1974 | Zaire | Zambia | 2-2 (a.e.t.); 2-0 (replay) | Cairo, Egypt |
| 1972 | PR Congo | Mali | 3-2 | Yaoundé, Cameroon |
| 1970 | Sudan | Ghana | 1-0 | Khartoum, Sudan |
| 1968 | DR Congo | Ghana | 1-0 | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
| 1965 | Ghana | Tunisia | 3-2 (a.e.t.) | Tunis, Tunisia |
| 1963 | Ghana | Sudan | 3-0 | Accra, Ghana |
| 1962 | Ethiopia | United Arab Republic (Egypt) | 4-2 (a.e.t.) | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
| 1959 | United Arab Republic (Egypt) | Sudan | 2-1 (Final Round-Robin) | Cairo, Egypt |
| 1957 | United Arab Republic (Egypt) | Ethiopia | 4-0 | Khartoum, Sudan |
Who has the Most African Cup of Nations Winners?
| Country | No. Of Champions | No. Of Runners-Up | Winning Years |
| Egypt | 7 | 3 | 1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2010 |
| Cameroon | 5 | 2 | 1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2017 |
| Ghana | 4 | 5 | 1963, 1965, 1978, 1982 |
| Nigeria | 3 | 5 | 1980, 1994, 2013 |
| Ivory Coast | 3 | 2 | 1992, 2015, 2023 |
| Algeria | 2 | 1 | 1990, 2019 |
| DR Congo | 2 | 0 | 1968, 1974 |
| Zambia | 1 | 2 | 2012 |
| Tunisia | 1 | 2 | 2004 |
| Sudan | 1 | 2 | 1970 |
| Senegal | 1 | 2 | 2021 |
| Ethiopia | 1 | 1 | 1962 |
| Morocco | 1 | 1 | 1976 |
| South Africa | 1 | 1 | 1996 |
| Congo | 1 | 0 | 1972 |
| Mali | 0 | 1 | N/A |
| Burkina Faso | 0 | 1 | N/A |
| Uganda | 0 | 1 | N/A |
| Guinea | 0 | 1 | N/A |
| Libya | 0 | 1 | N/A |
Egypt is the number 1 football side and the most successful soccer-playing nation in Africa. Why? They have won Africa’s biggest football competition on 7 occasions while finishing thrice as the runners-up. Cameroon is the 2nd most successful side with 5 titles meanwhile Ghana prevailed 4 times. Each of Nigeria & Ivory Coast won the tournament thrice. Algeria and DR Congo are the other sides to win this competition more than once (2 titles for each). Other past AFCON winners are Zambia, Tunisia, Sudan, Senegal, and Ethiopia. On the other hand, Mali, Burkina Faso, Uganda, Guinea, and Libya; all featured in respective finals but failed to clinch the title.
