Ivory Coast national football team

The Ivory Coast national football team (French: Équipe de football de Côte d'Ivoire, recognized as the Côte d'Ivoire by FIFA[2]) represents Ivory Coast in men's international football. Nicknamed the Elephants, the team is managed by the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF). Until 2005, their greatest accomplishment was winning the 1992 African Cup of Nations against Ghana on penalties at the Stade Léopold Sédar Senghor in Dakar, Senegal. Their second success came in 2015, again defeating Ghana on penalties in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. The team represents both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Ivory Coast women's national football team.
Côte d'Ivoire
Nickname(s)Les Éléphants (The Elephants)
AssociationIvorian Football Federation
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationWAFU (West Africa)
Head coachPatrice Beaumelle
CaptainSerge Aurier
Most capsDidier Zokora (123)
Top scorerDidier Drogba (65)
Home stadiumStade Félix Houphouët-Boigny Stade National
FIFA codeCIV
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 53 2 (31 March 2022)[1]
Highest12 (February 2013, April–May 2013)
Lowest75 (March–May 2004)
First international
 Ivory Coast 3–2 Dahomey 
(Madagascar, 13 April 1960)
Biggest win
 Ivory Coast 11–0 Central African Republic 
(Abidjan, Ivory Coast; 27 December 1961)
Biggest defeat
 Netherlands 5–0 Ivory Coast 
(Rotterdam, Netherlands; 4 June 2017)
World Cup
Appearances3 (first in 2006)
Best resultGroup stage (2006, 2010, 2014)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances24 (first in 1965)
Best resultChampions (1992, 2015)
African Nations Championship
Appearances3 (first in 2009)
Best resultThird place, 2016
FIFA Confederations Cup
Appearances1 (first in 1992)
Best resultFourth Place, 1992
Logo until 2014

The team had their best run between 2006 and 2014 when they qualified for three consecutive FIFA World Cups.

History

1960s

The team played its first international match against Dahomey, now known as Benin, which they won 3–2 on 13 April 1960 in Madagascar.

The team took a large 11–0 victory against the Central African Republic. In 1961 the team made their first appearance in the Africa Cup of Nations. After gaining independence from France, the team finished third in the 1963 and 1965 tournaments.

1970s

Ivory Coast's performances in the 1970s were mixed. In the 1970 African Cup of Nations, the team finished top of their group, but lost to Ghana - the powerhouses of African football at the time - in the semi-finals, and went on to finish 4th after losing the third-place play-off to the United Arab Republic (now Egypt). They failed to qualify for the 1972 edition, losing 4–3 to Congo-Brazzaville in the final qualifying round. They qualified in 1974 but finished bottom of their group with only a single point, then failed to qualify in 1976, again losing to Congo-Brazzaville (now simply known as the Congo) in the first round.

The team initially qualified for 1978, beating Mali 2–1 on aggregate, but were disqualified for fielding an ineligible player in the second leg. Mali were also disqualified, due to police and stadium security assaulting the match officials during the first leg, and so Upper Volta, who Ivory Coast had beaten in the first qualifying round, inherited their place.

1980s

In 1984, the team hosted the African Cup of Nations for the first time, but failed to get out of their group. In 1986, they narrowly qualified from their group on goals scored, and went on to finish third once more, beating Morocco 3–2 in the third-place play-off.

1990s

At the 1992 Africa Cup of Nations, Ivory Coast beat Algeria 3–0 and drew 0–0 with Congo to finish top of their group. An extra-time victory over Zambia and a penalty shoot-out win over Cameroon took them to the final for the first time, where they faced Ghana. The match again went to a penalty shoot-out, which became (at the time) the highest-scoring in international football; Ivory Coast eventually triumphed 11–10 to win the title for the first time. They were unable to defend their title in 1994, losing to Nigeria in the semi-finals.

The Ivory Coast team is notable for having participated in (and won) the two highest-scoring penalty shoot-outs in international football competition — the 24-shot shoot-out in the final of the 1992 African Cup of Nations when Ghana was defeated 11–10, and the 24-shot shoot-out in the quarter-final of the 2006 African Cup of Nations, when Cameroon was defeated 12–11. In 2015, Ivory Coast once again defeated Ghana in the final of an 2015 African Cup of Nations with a 22-shot shoot-out, winning 9–8.

2000s and World Cup debut

In October 2005, Ivory Coast secured qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, which was to be their first-ever appearance at the tournament. Having been drawn into a "Group of Death" that also featured Cameroon and Egypt, Ivory Coast went into the final match second behind Cameroon, but qualified after beating Sudan 3-1 while Cameroon could only draw with Egypt.

In the tournament itself, Ivory Coast were drawn into another Group of Death, against Argentina, Holland, and Serbia and Montenegro. They lost 2–1 to Argentina - with Didier Drogba scoring the team's first-ever World Cup goal in the 82nd minute - and then 2–1 to the Netherlands, meaning they had already been eliminated by the time they played Serbia and Montenegro. Despite going 2-0 down after just 20 minutes, Ivory Coast came back to win 3–2, with Bonaventure Kalou scoring an 86th-minute penalty to give Ivory Coast their first-ever World Cup victory.

After Uli Stielike left before the 2008 African Cup of Nations, due to his son's health, co-trainer Gerard Gili took his position. To compensate of the lack of another co-coach, Didier Drogba acted as a player-coach. This was only the second time that a player had also acted as a coach at the tournament, after George Weah was both player and coach for Liberia during the 2002 tournament.

2010s
Ivory Coast national team lineup before a match against Poland in 2010

Ivory Coast qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, and were again drawn in a "Group of Death", against five-time champions Brazil, Portugal, and North Korea. Having managed a 0–0 draw against Portugal, a 3–1 defeat to Brazil meant that in order to qualify from their group, they would have to beat North Korea, Brazil needed to beat Portugal, and (thanks to Portugal's 7–0 win over North Korea) there needed to be a substantial swing in goal difference. Ivory Coast won 3–0, but Portugal held Brazil to a 0–0 draw and Ivory Coast were once again eliminated in the group stages.

2014

The team made a third appearance in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, where they were drawn in Group C against Colombia, Greece, and Japan. After coming from behind to beat Japan 2–1, Ivory Coast then lost 2–1 to Colombia, leaving their qualification in the balance. In their final match against Greece, the score was 1-1 going into stoppage time, and with Japan losing 4–1 to Colombia, Ivory Coast looked set to qualify. However, in the 93rd minute, Giovanni Sio gave away a penalty which Georgios Samaras converted, giving Greece both the victory and the place in the last 16; Ivory Coast, meanwhile, went out in the group stage for the third tournament in a row.

The team's streak of World Cup qualifications came to an end at the 2018 tournament. Needing a win in their final match against Morocco, they instead lost 2–0, meaning Morocco qualified instead.

Home stadium

From 1964 to 2020, Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny, a 50,000-seater stadium in Abidjan was the main venue used to host home matches. In 2020, the 60,000-seat Stade National, also in Abidjan, was opened ahead of the 2023 Africa Cup Of Nations.[3]

Supporters

Supporters of the Elephants are known to be among the most colorful in Africa. At Ivory Coast matches, the Elephants supporter sections typically include a percussion band that mimics the sounds of an elephant traveling through a forest.

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last twelve months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

2021
30 March 2021 AFCONQ Ivory Coast  3–1  Ethiopia Abidjan, Ivory Coast
13:00 UTC±0
Report
Stadium: Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara
Referee: Charles Bulu (Ghana)
Note: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all matches of matchdays 5 and 6 scheduled for June 2020 had been postponed to March 2021.[4]
5 June Friendly Ivory Coast  2–1  Burkina Faso Abidjan, Ivory Coast
19:00 UTC±0
Report
Stadium: Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara
Referee: Yelebodom Bodjona (Togo)
12 June Friendly Ghana  0–0  Ivory Coast Cape Coast, Ghana
17:00 UTC±0 Report Stadium: Cape Coast Sports Stadium
Referee: Daouda Guèye (Senegal)
3 September 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification Group D Mozambique  0–0  Ivory Coast Estádio Nacional do Zimpeto, Maputo
15:00 UTC+2 Report Referee: Pacifique Ndabihawenimana (Burundi)
6 September 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification Group D Ivory Coast  2–1  Cameroon Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara, Abidjan
19:00 UTC±0
Report
Referee: Mustapha Ghorbal (Algeria)
8 October 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification Group D Malawi  0–3  Ivory Coast Orlando Stadium, Johannesburg (South Africa)
15:00 Report
Referee: Peter Waweru (Kenya)
11 October 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification Group D Ivory Coast  2–1  Malawi Cotonou, Benin
17:00 UTC+1
Report
Stadium: Stade de l'Amitié
Referee: Bernard Camille (Seychelles)
13 November 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification Group D Ivory Coast  3–0  Mozambique Cotonou, Benin
20:00 UTC+1
Report Stadium: Stade de l'Amitié
Referee: Ahmed El Ghandour (Egypt)
16 November 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification Group D Cameroon  1–0  Ivory Coast Douala, Cameroon
20:00 UTC+1
Report Stadium: Japoma Stadium
Referee: Janny Sikazwe (Zambia)

2022
12 January 2021 AFCON Equatorial Guinea  0–1  Ivory Coast Douala, Cameroon
20:00 Report
Stadium: Japoma Stadium
Referee: Rédouane Jiyed (Morocco)
16 January 2021 AFCON Ivory Coast  2–2  Sierra Leone Douala, Cameroon
17:00
Report
Stadium: Japoma Stadium
Referee: Maguette N'Diaye (Senegal)
20 January 2021 AFCON Ivory Coast  3–1  Algeria Douala, Cameroon
 Report
Stadium: Japoma Stadium
Referee: Victor Gomes (South Africa)
26 January AFCON Round of 16 Ivory Coast  0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–5 p)		  Egypt Douala, Cameroon
Report Stadium: Japoma Stadium
Referee: Jean Jacques Ndala Ngambo (DR Congo)
Penalties
25 March 2022 (2022-03-25) Friendly France  2–1  Ivory Coast Marseille, France
21:15 UTC+1
Report
Stadium: Stade Vélodrome
Referee: Vítor Ferreira (Portugal)
29 March 2022 (2022-03-29) Friendly England  3–0  Ivory Coast London, England
19:45
Report Stadium: Wembley Stadium
Referee: Erik Lambrechts (Belgium)

Coaches

Players

Current squad

The following players were selected for the friendly matches against France and England on 25 and 29 March 2022, respectively.[5][6]

Caps and goals updated as of 29 March 2022, after the match against England.[7]

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
23 1GK Badra Ali Sangaré (1986-05-30) 30 May 1986 23 0 JDR Stars
1 1GK Abdoul Karim Cissé (1985-10-20) 20 October 1985 6 0 ASEC Mimosas
16 1GK Mohamed Kone (2002-03-07) 7 March 2002 0 0 Le Havre
17 2DF Serge Aurier (1992-12-24) 24 December 1992 79 3 Villarreal
21 2DF Eric Bailly (1994-04-12) 12 April 1994 46 2 Manchester United
27 2DF Simon Deli (1991-10-27) 27 October 1991 23 0 Adana Demirspor
3 2DF Ghislain Konan (1995-12-27) 27 December 1995 19 0 Reims
7 2DF Odilon Kossounou (2001-01-04) 4 January 2001 14 0 Bayer Leverkusen
6 2DF Willy Boly (1991-02-03) 3 February 1991 12 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers
5 2DF Emmanuel Agbadou (1997-06-07) 7 June 1997 2 0 Eupen
2 2DF Ismaël Diallo (1997-01-29) 29 January 1997 0 0 Ajaccio
15 3MF Max Gradel (1987-11-30) 30 November 1987 96 16 Sivasspor
8 3MF Franck Kessié (1996-12-19) 19 December 1996 58 6 Milan
4 3MF Jean Michaël Seri (1991-07-19) 19 July 1991 40 4 Fulham
11 3MF Maxwel Cornet (1996-09-27) 27 September 1996 29 6 Burnley
18 3MF Ibrahim Sangaré (1997-12-02) 2 December 1997 22 4 PSV
3MF Jérémie Boga (1997-01-03) 3 January 1997 8 1 Atalanta
14 3MF Hassane Kamara (1994-03-05) 5 March 1994 6 0 Watford
12 3MF Fousseny Coulibaly (1992-12-12) 12 December 1992 3 0 Espérance Tunis
20 3MF Paul Akouokou (1997-12-20) 20 December 1997 2 0 Betis
19 4FW Nicolas Pépé (1995-05-20) 20 May 1995 34 9 Arsenal
9 4FW Wilfried Zaha (1992-11-10) 10 November 1992 26 5 Crystal Palace
22 4FW Sébastien Haller (1994-06-22) 22 June 1994 14 4 Ajax
28 4FW Yohan Boli (1993-09-17) 17 September 1993 12 0 Al-Rayyan
10 4FW Jean Evrard Kouassi (1994-09-25) 25 September 1994 7 1 Trabzonspor
25 4FW Karim Konaté (2004-03-21) 21 March 2004 1 0 ASEC Mimosas

    Recent call-ups

    The following players have also been called up to the squad within the last 12 months and are still eligible to represent.

    Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
    GK Sylvain Gbohouo (1988-10-29) 29 October 1988 65 0 Wolkite Ketema 2021 AFCON, 26 January 2022
    GK Ira Eliezer Tapé (1997-08-31) 31 August 1997 2 0 San Pédro 2021 AFCON, 26 January 2022
    GK N'Drin Ulrich Edan (1992-10-19) 19 October 1992 0 0 AFAD v.  Ghana, 12 June 2021
    DF Wilfried Singo (2000-12-25) 25 December 2000 2 0 Torino v.  France, 25 March 2022 INJ
    DF Wilfried Kanon (1993-07-06) 6 July 1993 53 3 Pyramids 2021 AFCON, 26 January 2022
    DF Ousmane Ouattara (1993-12-22) 22 December 1993 1 1 Monastir 2021 AFCON, 26 January 2022
    DF Sinaly Diomandé (2001-04-09) 9 April 2001 8 0 Lyon v.  Cameroon, 16 November 2021
    MF Hamed Traorè (2000-02-16) 16 February 2000 4 0 Sassuolo v.  France, 25 March 2022 INJ
    MF Serey Dié (1984-11-07) 7 November 1984 61 2 Sion 2021 AFCON, 26 January 2022
    MF Jean-Daniel Akpa Akpro (1992-10-11) 11 October 1992 17 0 Lazio 2021 AFCON, 26 January 2022
    MF Habib Maïga (1996-06-01) 1 June 1996 13 0 Metz 2021 AFCON, 26 January 2022
    MF Franck Boli (1993-12-07) 7 December 1993 2 0 Ferencváros v.  Malawi, 11 October 2021
    MF Serge Arnaud Aka (1994-11-16) 16 November 1994 0 0 Altay v.  Malawi, 11 October 2021
    MF Seko Fofana (1995-05-07) 7 May 1995 6 1 Lens v.  Cameroon, 6 September 2021
    MF Wilfried Gneba (1998-01-01) 1 January 1998 0 0 Africa Sport v.  Cameroon, 6 September 2021
    MF Eboue Kouassi (1997-12-13) 13 December 1997 0 0 Arouca v.  Cameroon, 6 September 2021
    MF Ismaila Soro (1998-05-07) 7 May 1998 1 0 Celtic v.  Ghana, 12 June 2021
    FW Christian Kouamé (1997-12-06) 6 December 1997 12 0 Anderlecht v.  France, 25 March 2022 INJ
    FW Lago Junior (1990-12-31) 31 December 1990 5 0 Mallorca v.  Cameroon, 16 November 2021
    FW Gervinho (1987-05-27) 27 May 1987 88 23 Trabzonspor v.  Malawi, 11 October 2021
    FW Amad Diallo (2002-07-11) 11 July 2002 3 1 Rangers v.  Mozambique, 3 September 2021 INJ
    FW Chris Bedia (1996-03-05) 5 March 1996 0 0 Troyes v.  Ghana, 12 June 2021
    • DEC Player refused to join the team after the call-up.
    • INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
    • PRE Preliminary Squad.
    • SUS Suspended from the national team.

    Records
    As of 26 January 2022[8]
    Players in bold are still active with Ivory Coast.

    Most capped players
    Didier Zokora, the all-time most capped player for Ivory Coast.
    Rank Player Caps Goals Career
    1. Didier Zokora 123 1 2000–2014
    2. Kolo Touré 120 7 2000–2015
    3. Didier Drogba 105 65 2002–2014
    4. Yaya Touré 102 19 2004–2015
    5. Siaka Tiéné 100 2 2000–2015
    6. Salomon Kalou 96 27 2007–2017
    7. Max Gradel 94 16 2011–present
    8. Abdoulaye Traoré 90 49 1984–1996
    9. Arthur Boka 88 1 2004–2015
    Gervinho 88 23 2007–present

    Top goalscorers
    Didier Drogba, the all-time top goalscorer for Ivory Coast.
    Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
    1. Didier Drogba (list) 65 105 0.62 2002–2014
    2. Abdoulaye Traoré 49 90 0.54 1984–1996
    3. Djohan Tiéhi 28 50 0.56 1985–1999
    4. Salomon Kalou 27 96 0.28 2007–2017
    5. Gervinho 23 88 0.26 2007–present
    6. Ibrahima Bakayoko 22 39 0.56 1996–2002
    7. Laurent Pokou 21 30 0.7 1967–1980
    8. Yaya Touré 19 102 0.19 2004–2015
    9. Aruna Dindane 18 62 0.29 2000–2010
    10. Wilfried Bony 17 58 0.29 2010–2019

    Competitive record

    FIFA World Cup
    See also: Ivory Coast at the FIFA World Cup
    FIFA World Cup record FIFA World Cup qualification record
    Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
    1930 Did not enter Did not enter
    1934
    1938
    1950
    1954
    1958
    1962
    1966
    1970
    1974 Did not qualify 6 3 2 1 8 7
    1978 6 3 2 1 11 10
    1982
    1986 4 1 1 2 6 5
    1990 4 1 2 1 5 1
    1994 8 4 3 1 12 6
    1998 2 0 1 1 1 2
    2002 10 5 4 1 22 10
    2006 Group stage 19th 3 1 0 2 5 6 Squad 10 7 1 2 20 7
    2010 17th 3 1 1 1 4 3 Squad 12 8 4 0 29 6
    2014 21st 3 1 0 2 4 5 Squad 8 5 3 0 19 7
    2018 Did not qualify 8 4 2 2 11 5
    2022 6 4 1 1 10 3
    2026 To be determined To be determined
    Total Group stage 3/22 9 3 1 5 13 14 − 86 45 26 15 155 72

    FIFA Confederations Cup
    FIFA Confederations Cup record
    Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Squad
    1992 Fourth place 4th 2 0 0 2 2 9 Squad
    1995 to 2017 Did not qualify
    TotalFourth place1/10200229–

    Africa Cup of Nations
    Africa Cup of Nations record
    Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
    1957Part of  France
    1959
    1962Not affiliated to CAF
    1963
    1965Third place3rd320154
    1968Third place3rd531196
    1970Fourth place4th5212119
    1972Did not qualify
    1974Group stage7th301225
    1976Did not qualify
    1978Banned
    1980Group stage6th302123
    1982Did not enter
    1984Group stage5th310244
    1986Third place3rd530275
    1988Group stage6th303022
    19906th310235
    1992 Champions 1st 5 2 3 0 4 0
    1994Third place3rd5311115
    1996Group stage11th310225
    1998Quarter-finals7th4220106
    2000Group stage9th311134
    200216th301214
    2004Did not qualify
    2006 Runners-up 2nd 6 3 2 1 6 5
    2008 Fourth place 4th 6 4 0 2 16 9
    2010Quarter-finals8th312054
    2012 Runners-up 2nd 6 5 1 0 9 0
    2013 Quarter-finals 5th 4 2 1 1 8 5
    2015 Champions 1st 6 3 3 0 9 4
    2017 Group stage 11th 3 0 2 1 2 3
    2019 Quarter-finals 5th 5 3 1 1 7 3
    2021 Round of 16 10th 4 2 2 0 5 1
    2023Qualified as hosts
    2025To be determined
    Total2 Titles24/3399443025143101
    *Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.
    **Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won.
    ***Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

    African Nations Championship
    African Nations Championship record
    Appearances: 4
    Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
    2009Group stage8th301204
    2011Group stage12th310224
    2014Did not qualify
    2016Third place3rd6402104
    2018Group stage14th301203
    2020Did not qualify
    2022To be determined
    Total Third place 4/6 15 5 2 8 12 15

    African Games
    Football at the African Games has been an under-23 tournament since 1991.
    See also: Ivory Coast national under-23 football team
    African Games record
    Year Result Pld W D* L GF GA
    1965-000000
    1973-000000
    1978-000000
    1987-000000
    1991–present See Ivory Coast national under-23 football team
    Total4/4000000

    CECAFA Cup
    Main article: CECAFA Cup

    Honours

    Africa Cup of Nations

    See also

    References
    1. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
    2. "FIFA". fifa.com.
    3. "AFCON 2023: Ivory Coast opens 60,000-seater stadium". Vanguard News. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
    4. "Total AFCON 2021 qualifiers postponed". CAF. 13 March 2020.
    5. http://www.fifciv.com/?q=matches-amicaux-des-25-et-29-mars-2022-voici-les-%C3%A9l%C3%A9phants-s%C3%A9lectionn%C3%A9s
    6. http://www.fifciv.com/?q=match-amical-fra-civ-du-25-mars-2022-les-el%C3%A9phants-ont-d%C3%A9but%C3%A9-la-pr%C3%A9paration-%C3%A0-chantilly
    7. Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "CAFOnline.com". CAFOnline.com.
    8. Roberto Mamrud. "IvoryCoast – Record International Players". RSSSF. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
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