The 13th edition of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) was hosted by Libya from 5 to 19 March 1982, with the participation of eight teams, similar to the 1980 tournament, which were split into two groups of four.
The Egyptian team had withdrawn from the tournament’s qualifications due to the political crisis between Egypt and Libya.
Group A included Libya (host country), Ghana, Cameroon, and Tunisia, while Group B comprised of Algeria, Zambia, Nigeria (holders), and Ethiopia.
Libya topped Group A with four points collected from one win and two draws. The Libyans scored four goals and conceded two.
Ghana came in second place with four points also, but scored three goals and conceded two, while Cameroon ranked third with three points collected from three draws. Tunisia tailed the standings with one point from a draw.
In Group B, Algeria topped the ranking with five points collected from two wins and two draws. Desert warriors scored three goals and conceded one. Zambia ranked second with four points collected from two wins. They scored four goals and conceded one.
Nigeria came in third on two points with four goals scored and five conceded, while Ethiopia ranked fourth with one point from a draw, scoring no goals and conceding four.
In the knockout stage, Ghana beat Algeria 3-2 after extra time, while Libya (hosts) won 2-1 over Zambia.
In the third-place match, Zambia beat Algeria 2-0 to win the bronze medal.
In the final, Ghana won the title after beating Libya 7-6 on penalties on 11 June in Tripoli. It was Ghana’s fourth continental title in their history.
14th edition: Cameroon wins its first championship
Ivory Coast hosted the African Cup of Nations in 1984. Eight teams participated in the tournament. The teams were split into two groups.
Group A included Egypt, Cameroon, Ivory Coast (hosts), and Togo, while Algeria, Nigeria, Ghana (holders), and Malawi were in Group B.
Egypt topped the first group with five points collected from two wins and a draw, scoring three goals and conceding one. Cameroon came in second place with four points collected from two wins, scoring six goals and conceding two.
Ivory Coast came in third place with two points from a win. They totally scored four goals and conceded four. Togo ranked fourth with a point from a draw. They scored a goal and conceded seven.
In the second group, Algeria ranked first with five points collected from two wins and a draw, scoring five goals and conceding none. While Nigeria came in second place with four points from a win and two draws, scoring four goals and conceding three. Ghana finished third with two points from a win. They scored two goals and conceded four. Finally, Malawi came in fourth place with a point from a draw, scoring two goals and conceding six.
In the semi-finals, Nigeria beat Egypt 8-7 on penalties. In the other match, Cameroon beat Algeria 5-4 on penalties too.
In the third-place match, Algeria beat Egypt 3-1 at the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan. In the final, Cameroon beat Nigeria 3-1 at the same stadium in the presence of 50,000 spectators. Cameroon crowned the title for the first time in its history.
15th edition: Egypt wins its third championship
The African Cup of Nations was held in Egypt in 1986 for the third time in its history. Eight teams participated in the tournament which were split into two groups.
Group A comprises of Senegal, Mozambique, Ivory Coast, and Egypt (hosts). The second group includes Algeria, Morocco, Cameroon (holders), and Zambia.
In the opening match, Egypt lost to Senegal 1-0. The Pharaohs then defeated Ivory Coast and Mozambique 1-0 in each game to secure a semi-finals seat.
Cameroon and Morocco qualified for the semi-finals from the second group.
Egypt met with its Moroccan counterpart and won 1-0 by Tahir Abuzid’s free-kick. Roger Milla of Cameroon led his team to a precious victory on Ivory Coast 1-0 in the second match to qualify with the Pharaohs to the final.
In the third-place match, Ivory Coast beat Morocco 3-2. In the final held on 21 March, Egypt won the title after beating Cameroon 5-4 on penalties.
Egypt won the title for the third time in its history after a long absence, where they were crowned twice in 1957 and 1959.
16th edition: Cameroon wins its second championship in Morocco
Morocco hosted the African Cup of Nations in 1988. Eight teams participated in the tournament, split into two groups. This tournament has the least goals-per-game average in Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.
Morocco (hosts), Algeria, Ivory Coast, and Zaire were in Group A. The second group included Cameroon, Egypt (holders), Nigeria, and Kenya.
In the group stage, Morocco led Group A with four points from a win and two draws, scoring two goals and conceding one. Algeria came in second place with three points from a win and a draw. They scored two goals and conceded two. Ivory Coast came in third place with thee points collected from three draws, scoring two goals and conceding two. Zaire finished fourth with two points from two draws, scoring two goals and conceding three.
In the second group, Nigeria came in first place with four points from a win and two draws, scoring four goals and conceding one. Cameroon came in second place with four points from a win and two draws, scoring two goals and conceding one. Egypt came in third place with three points from a win and a draw. The Pharaohs scored three goals and conceded one. Kenya ranked fourth with one point from a draw, conceding six goals and scoring none.
In the semi-finals, Nigeria beat Algeria 9-8 on penalties. In the second game, Cameroon achieved a tough 1-0 win over Morocco.
In the third-place match, Algeria beat Morocco 4-3 on penalties. In the final, Emmanuel Conde led Cameroon to win the title after a 1-0 win over Nigeria at Casablanca Mohamed V Stadium. It was Cameroon’s second AFCON title in its history.
17th edition: Desert Warriors win first championship at home
Algeria hosted the 17th edition of the African Cup of Nations. Eight teams took part in the competition which were split into two groups of four.
Algeria (hosts), Nigeria, Ivory Coast, and Egypt were in the first group, while Zambia, Senegal, Cameroon, and Kenya in the second group.
In Group A, Algeria ranked first with six points from three wins, scoring 10 goals and conceding one. Nigeria came in second place with four points from two wins, scoring three goals and conceding five. Ivory Coast were third with two points from a single win. They scored three goals and conceded five. The Egyptian team tailed the group with no points, losing its three games. The Pharaohs scored a goal and conceded six.
In the second group, Zambia topped the standings with five points from two wins and a draw, scoring two goals and conceding none. Senegal came in second place with four points from two wins and two draws. The players scored two goals and conceded none. Cameroon finished third, with two points, scoring two goals and conceding three goals. Kenya ranked fourth with a single point from a draw.
In the semi-finals, Zambia beat Nigeria 2-0 and Algeria beat Senegal 2-1. In the third-place match, Zambia defeated Senegal 2-0. In the final, Algeria beat Nigeria 2-0.
18th edition: Ivory Coast crowned title for first time
The tournament was held in Senegal, with the participation of 12 teams for the first time. They were divided into four groups of three. The first and second teams of each group qualified for the quarter-finals.
Nigeria, Senegal (hosts), and Kenya were in Group A. Cameroon, Zaire, and Morocco in Group B. Ivory Coast, Congo, and Algeria (holders) in Group C. Egypt, Ghana, and Zambia in Group D.
Nigeria topped its group with four points from two wins, while Senegal came second with two points.
In Group B, Cameroon topped the standings with three points from a victory and draw, while Zaire came second with two points.
In Group C, Senegal ranked first with three points from a victory and draw, while Congo came in second with two points.
In Group D, Ghana qualified as first with four points from two wins, while Zambia ranked second from a win, and Egypt came in third place with no points.
In the quarter-finals, Nigeria beat Zaire 1-0, Cameroon beat Senegal 1-0, Ivory Coast beat Zambia 1-0, and Ghana beat Congo 2-1.
In the semi-finals, Ghana achieved a 2-1 victory over Nigeria. In the second game, Ivory Coast beat Cameroon 3-1 on penalties.
In the third-place match, Nigeria beat Cameroon 2-1. In the final, Ivory Coast won the title for the first time in its history, after beating Ghana 11-10 on penalties. Both games were held at Leopold Sedar Senghor stadium in Dakar.
