Ivory Coast national football team

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

Africa Cup of Nations record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1957	Part of  France
1959
1962	Not affiliated to CAF
1963
1965	Third place	3rd	3	2	0	1	5	4
1968	Third place	3rd	5	3	1	1	9	6
1970	Fourth place	4th	5	2	1	2	11	9
1972	Did not qualify
1974	Group stage	7th	3	0	1	2	2	5
1976	Did not qualify
1978	Banned
1980	Group stage	6th	3	0	2	1	2	3
1982	Did not enter
1984	Group stage	5th	3	1	0	2	4	4
1986	Third place	3rd	5	3	0	2	7	5
1988	Group stage	6th	3	0	3	0	2	2
1990		6th	3	1	0	2	3	5
1992	Champions	1st	5	2	3	0	4	0
1994	Third place	3rd	5	3	1	1	11	5
1996	Group stage	11th	3	1	0	2	2	5
1998	Quarter-finals	7th	4	2	2	0	10	6
2000	Group stage	9th	3	1	1	1	3	4
2002		16th	3	0	1	2	1	4
2004	Did not qualify
2006	Runners-up	2nd	6	3	2	1	6	5
2008	Fourth place	4th	6	4	0	2	16	9
2010	Quarter-finals	8th	3	1	2	0	5	4
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
2023	Qualified as hosts
2025	To be determined
Total	2 Titles	24/33	99	44	30	25	143	101

*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.

Football at the African Games has been an under-23 tournament since 1991.

African Games record
Year	Result	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1965	-	0	0	0	0	0	0
1973	-	0	0	0	0	0	0
1978	-	0	0	0	0	0	0
1987	-	0	0	0	0	0	0
1991–present	See Ivory Coast national under-23 football team
Total	4/4	0	0	0	0	0	0