Africa Cup of Nations: Everything You Need to Know About the Tournament

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The 33rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations gets underway on Sunday, January 9. Cameroon is hosting the tournament for the second time, having previously staged the event in 1972.

AFCON 2021 was originally supposed to take place in June and July, but the competition was rescheduled for obvious reasons.

After beating Senegal in the AFCON 2019 final, Algeria are the reigning champions. Led by Manchester City superstar Riyad Mahrez, the Fennec Foxes will be hoping to defend their crown.

So, with tournament just around the corner, let’s take a look at some key stats and records regarding the history of the Africa Cup of Nations – before looking ahead to AFCON 2021.

• Which country has won the most AFCON titles?

Egypt have won more AFCON titles than any other country. The Pharaohs have lifted the trophy a record seven times, including three consecutive triumphs between 2006 and 2010.

With five titles to their name, Cameroon are the second-most successful side in the history of the competition. Ghana and Nigeria are the only other teams to have tasted AFCON glory on more than two occasions.

• Egypt – 7 titles (1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2010)
• Cameroon – 5 titles (1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2017)
• Ghana – 4 titles (1963, 1965, 1978, 1982)
• Nigeria – 3 titles (1980, 1994, 2013)
• Ivory Coast – 2 titles (1992, 2015)
• Algeria – 2 titles (1990, 2019)
• DR Congo – 2 titles (1968, 1974)

Ivory Coast, Algeria and DR Congo have all won the tournament twice. Seven teams – Zambia, Tunisia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Morocco, South Africa and Congo – have lifted the trophy on one occasion.

Believe it or not, Senegal have never won the Africa Cup of Nations. They have reached the final twice but have never managed to get over the line.

• Who are the top goalscorers in AFCON history?

Samuel Eto’o is the competition’s all-time leading goalscorer. The former Real Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Milan and Chelsea striker featured in six editions of AFCON, scoring 18 goals along the way.

• Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon) – 18 goals
• Laurent Pokou (Ivory Coast) – 14 goals
• Rashidi Yekini (Nigeria) – 13 goals
• Hassan El-Shazly (Egypt) – 12 goals
• Patrick Mboma (Cameroon) – 11 goals
• Hossam Hassan (Egypt) – 11 goals
• Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast) – 11 goals

Gabon forward Shiva N’Zigou is the youngest goalscorer in AFCON history, having netted against South Africa in 2000 when he was just 16 years and 93 days old

At the ripe old age of 39 years and 174 days, Egypt’s Hossam Hassan became the tournament's oldest goalscorer when he hit the target against DR Congo in 2006.

• Who are the favourites to win AFCON 2021?

Let’s wrap things up by taking a look at the favourites to win the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations. As the list below details, there are numerous top teams in contention for the title.

• Senegal (5.50)
• Algeria (6.50)
• Egypt (7.00)
• Ivory Coast (8.00)
• Cameroon (10.00)
• Morocco (11.00)
• Nigeria (11.00)
• Ghana (13.00)
• Tunisia (15.00)
• Mali (26.00)

Senegal (5.50) are the favourites to win AFCON 2021, followed closely by defending champions Algeria (6.50).

Mohamed Salah’s Egypt (7.00) are also expected to mount a serious challenge for the trophy, as are Ivory Coast (8.00).

Host nation Cameroon (10.00) will fancy their chances of triumphing on home soil. Morocco (11.00), Nigeria (11.00), Ghana (13.00), Tunisia (15.00) and Mali (26.00) complete the top ten.

Make sure you keep an eye on Forebet in the coming weeks, as we will be covering the Africa Cup of Nations throughout the tournament.