The sixteen teams for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon were confirmed after the last round of the qualifiers played on Sunday.
Host nation Gabon are joined by Algeria, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Guinea, Bissau, Mali, Senegal, Morocco, Togo, Uganda, Tunisia, and Zimbabwe.
Uganda that finished second in Group D with 13 points, and Togo second in Group A with 11 points qualified as the two best runners-up.
Guinea-Bissau will be the only newcomers at the next year’s finals whilst Senegal was the single team to have won all six games and finished with a 100% record.
Guinea-Bissau will be the only entrant at next year’s finals whilst Senegal was the only team to have won all six matches and finish with a 100% record.
A country of a population of less than 2 million, and was rarely spoken about in football circles until recently. In a group with former winners’ Congo and Zambia, they prevailed. Since the beginning of 2010, Guinea Bissau has played a total of 27 matches, an average of less than four games in a year.
Neighbors Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was the only country from Central Africa, while West Africa has the biggest number of teams: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Senegal, and Togo.
There are nine countries from West Africa that have qualified, four from North region, one apiece from the East, Central and Southern Africa zones.
Algeria’s qualification for 2017 means 13 qualifications in a row for the Carthage Eagles since 1994. Between the period, 1994 to 2015, Tunisia won the title at home beating Morocco in the final in 2004 and losing to South Africa in the final in 1996.
Les Fennecs of Algeria had the best attack having scored a total of 25 goals, an average of more than four goals per game and conceding five. Algeria beat Ethiopia 7-1 in Blida in one of the biggest wins of the qualifiers.
The holders Cote d’Ivoire failed to live up to expectation in the qualifiers. In a group with Sierra Leone and Sudan, Les Elephants managed just one win and three draws, surviving a late scare from Sierra Leone in the final match which ended 1-1 in Bouake.
Victory for Sierra Leone would have denied the Ivorian’s the opportunity to defend their title in Gabon. It serves a huge warning to the West Africans ahead next year’s final tournament and the qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018.
Uganda, second in Group D with 13 points, and Togo, second in Group A with 11 points qualified as the two best runners-up.
A grit prize for Uganda Cranes, they were losing finalists in 1978, beaten by host Ghana 2-0 in the grand finale, Uganda had to wait for 38 years to realize qualification to the biggest stage in African football. This is a record in itself.
Despite a draw with Ghana’s Black Stars on Saturday, Rwanda will have to wait having finished with only seven points. Ghana qualified in Group H with 14 points.
Hosts: Gabon
East Africa: Uganda
North Africa: Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco
West Africa: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Senegal, Togo
Central Africa: Democratic Republic of Congo
Southern Africa: Zimbabwe
Former champions who failed to qualify
Ethiopia (1962), Sudan (1970), Congo (1972), Nigeria (1980, 1994, 2013), South Africa (1996), Zambia (2012)
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