2020 African Nations Championship

Summary

The 2020 African Nations Championship, known as CHAN 2020 for short and the Total African Nations Championship for sponsorship purposes, was the 6th edition of the biennial association football tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), featuring national teams consisting of players from their respective national leagues. It was held in Cameroon from 16 January to 7 February 2021.[1]

2020 African Nations Championship
Championnat d'Afrique des Nations 2020
2020 CHAN / CHAN 2020
Tournament details
Host countryCameroon
Dates16 January – 7 February 2021
Teams16 (from 1 confederation)
Venue(s)4 (in 3 host cities)
Final positions
Champions Morocco (2nd title)
Runners-up Mali
Third place Guinea
Fourth place Cameroon
Tournament statistics
Matches played32
Goals scored62 (1.94 per match)
Top scorer(s)Morocco Soufiane Rahimi (5 goals)
Best player(s)Morocco Soufiane Rahimi
Best young playerGuinea Morlaye Sylla
Best goalkeeperMorocco Anas Zniti
Fair play award Mali
2018
2022

Originally scheduled from 4 to 25 April 2020,[2] CAF announced its postponement on 17 March 2020 to a later date due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa,[3] eventually rescheduling it to January 2021 on 30 June that year.[4]

Morocco defeated Mali in the final to successfully defend their title, thus joining DR Congo as the tournament's most successful nations as well as being the first team to win it back-to-back or twice in a row.

Host selection edit

Ethiopia were originally officially appointed to host the tournament on 4 February 2018 after the final of the previous edition in Morocco,[5] but the country's football federation admitted it wasn't ready[6] so it was handed over to Cameroon instead.[7][8] Originally scheduled for January and February 2020,[9] it was postponed to April 2020[10] and then to January and February 2021.

After inspecting all stadia and infrastructure, CAF delivered a satisfactory certificate to Cameroon in which they indicated the percentage of attendance in line with health exigencies outlined by FIFA. Twenty five percent of spectators were admitted in the different stadia during the group stage of the competition and about 50% spectator increament the knock-out phases.[11]

Qualification edit

The qualification rounds took place in 2019. Djibouti and Gabon were banned as they withdrew during the qualification for the previous edition.[12] The former, along with original hosts Ethiopia were later reinstated.[13]

Qualified teams edit

The following 16 teams qualified for the final tournament:[14]

Tunisia withdrew from the tournament despite qualification. CAF invited Libya, whom Tunisia defeated to qualify, and gave them a deadline of 28 January 2020 to decide whether or not to participate in place of Tunisia.[15] Libya accepted the invitation[16] and Tunisia were fined $75,000 and banned from participating in the qualification rounds of the next edition.[17]

Team Zone Appearance Previous best performance FIFA ranking
at start of event
  Cameroon (hosts) Central Zone 4th Quarter-finals (2011, 2016) 50
  Congo 3rd Quarter-finals (2018) 91
  DR Congo 5th Champions (2009, 2016) 60
  Rwanda Central Eastern Zone 4th Quarter-finals (2016) 133
  Tanzania 2nd Group stage (2009) 135
  Uganda 5th Group stage (2011, 2014, 2016, 2018) 79
  Libya Northern Zone 4th Champions (2014) 111
  Morocco 4th Champions (2018) 35
  Namibia Southern Zone 2nd Quarter-finals (2018) 119
  Zambia 4th Third place (2009) 90
  Zimbabwe 5th Fourth place (2014) 108
  Guinea Western Zone A 3rd Fourth place (2016) 73
  Mali 4th Runners-up (2016) 57
  Burkina Faso Western Zone B 3rd Group stage (2014, 2018) 58
  Niger 3rd Quarter-finals (2011) 113
  Togo 1st Debut 128

Venues edit

Matches were held in 4 venues across 3 cities: Yaoundé, Limbe and Douala. The fixtures were announced on 24 February 2020.[18]

Douala
Japoma Stadium Stade de la Réunification
Capacity: 50,000 Capacity: 30,000
   
Yaounde Limbe
Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo Limbe Stadium
Capacity: 42,500 Capacity: 20,000
   

Squads edit

Each squad can contain a maximum of 23 players (Regulations Article 72).[19]

Match officials edit

The following 43 match officials officiated during the 2020 African Nations Championship.[20][21]

Referees
  •   Lahlou Benbraham
  •   George Gatogato
  •   Pacifique Ndabihawenimana
  •   Sidi Alioum
  •   Jean-Jacques Ndala
  •   Mahmoud El Banna (+ VAR)
  •   Mohamed Marouf
  •   (Ms) Lidya Tafesse
  •   Daniel Laryea
  •   Peter Waweru
  •   Andofetra Rakotojaona
  •   Adil Zourak (+ VAR)
  •   Boubou Traoré
  •   Beida Dahane (+ VAR)
  •   Ahmad Imtehaz Heeralall
  •   Samir Guezzaz
  •   Jean Claude Ishimwe
  •   Sadok Selmi
Assistant referees
  •   Jerson Dos Santos (+ AVAR)
  •   Elvis Noupue (+ AVAR)
  •   (Ms) Carine Atezambong Fomo
  •   Issa Yaya
  •   Liban Abdirazack Ahmed
  •   Oliver Safari
  •   Mahmoud Abouelregal (+ AVAR)
  •   Boris Ditsoga
  •   Abdul Aziz Jawo
  •   Gilbert Cheruiyot
  •   Attia Amsaaed
  •   Lionel Andrianantenaina
  •   (Ms) Bernadettar Kwimbira
  •   Mostafa Akarkad
  •   Zakaria Brinsi
  •   Abdoul Aziz Saley
  •   Mimisen Iyorhe
  •   Samuel Pwadutakam
  •   James Emile
  •   Mohammed Abdallah Ibrahim (+ AVAR)
  •   Kahalil Hassani (+ AVAR)
  •   Zakhele Siwela (+ AVAR)
Video assistant referees

Draw edit

The draw of this edition of the tournament was held at the Polyvalent Sports Center of Yaoundé in Yaoundé on 17 February 2020 at 19:00 WAT (UTC+1).[22][23][24] The 16 teams were drawn into 4 groups of 4 and were allocated into 4 pots, with the hosts Cameroon seeded in position A1 of Group A1 and the defending champions Morocco seeded in position C1 of Group C.[25]

Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4

Group stage edit

The top two teams of each group advance to the quarter-finals.

Tiebreakers

Teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Article 74):[19]

  1. Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  2. Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  3. Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  4. If more than two teams are tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams are still tied, all head-to-head criteria above are reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams;
  5. Goal difference in all group matches;
  6. Goals scored in all group matches;
  7. Drawing of lots.

All times are local, WAT (UTC+1).[26]

Group A edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   Mali 3 2 1 0 3 1 +2 7 Knockout stage
2   Cameroon (H) 3 1 2 0 2 1 +1 5
3   Burkina Faso 3 1 1 1 3 2 +1 4
4   Zimbabwe 3 0 0 3 1 5 −4 0
Source: CAF
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Cameroon  1–0  Zimbabwe
  • Banga   72'
Report
Referee: Jean-Jacques Ndala (DR Congo)
Mali  1–0  Burkina Faso
Report
Referee: Mohamed Marouf (Egypt)

Cameroon  1–1  Mali
  • Banga   6'
Report
Referee: Pacifque Ndabihawenimana (Burundi)
Burkina Faso  3–1  Zimbabwe
Report
Referee: Mahmoud El Banna (Egypt)

Burkina Faso  0–0  Cameroon
Report
Referee: Sadok Selmi (Tunisia)
Zimbabwe  0–1  Mali
Report
Referee: Beida Dahane (Mauritania)

Group B edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   DR Congo 3 2 1 0 4 2 +2 7 Knockout stage
2   Congo 3 1 1 1 2 2 0 4
3   Niger 3 0 2 1 2 3 −1 2
4   Libya 3 0 2 1 1 2 −1 2
Source: CAF
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
Libya  0–0  Niger
Report
Referee: Daniel Laryea (Ghana)
DR Congo  1–0  Congo
  • Kubanza   47'
Report
Referee: Samir Guezzaz (Morocco)

Libya  1–1  DR Congo
Report
  • Obenza   90+4'
Referee: Boubou Traore (Mali)
Congo  1–1  Niger
  • Mouandza   35'
Report
Referee: Peter Waweru (Kenya)

Congo  1–0  Libya
  • Ngouonimba   50'
Report
Niger  1–2  DR Congo
Report
Referee: Lahlou Benbraham (Algeria)

Group C edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   Morocco 3 2 1 0 6 2 +4 7 Knockout stage
2   Rwanda 3 1 2 0 3 2 +1 5
3   Togo 3 1 0 2 4 5 −1 3
4   Uganda 3 0 1 2 3 7 −4 1
Source: CAF
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
Morocco  1–0  Togo
Report
Referee: Andofetra Rakotojaona (Madagascar)
Rwanda  0–0  Uganda
Report

Morocco  0–0  Rwanda
Report
Referee: Ahmad Heeralall (Mauritius)
Uganda  1–2  Togo
Report
Referee: Georges Gatogato (Burundi)

Uganda  2–5  Morocco
Report
Referee: Boubou Traore (Mali)
Togo  2–3  Rwanda
Report
Referee: Mohamed Maarouf Eid Mansour (Egypt)

Group D edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   Guinea 3 1 2 0 6 3 +3 5 Knockout stage
2   Zambia 3 1 2 0 3 1 +2 5
3   Tanzania 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
4   Namibia 3 0 1 2 0 4 −4 1
Source: CAF
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
Zambia  2–0  Tanzania
Report
Referee: Lahlou Benbraham (Algeria)
Guinea  3–0  Namibia
Report
Referee: Jean Claude Ishimwe (Rwanda)

Zambia  1–1  Guinea
Report
  • Kantabadouno   58'
Referee: Adil Zourak (Morocco)
Namibia  0–1  Tanzania
Report

Namibia  0–0  Zambia
Report
Referee: Andofetra Rakotojaona (Madagascar)
Tanzania  2–2  Guinea
Report
Referee: Georges Gatogato (Burundi)

Knockout stages edit

In the knockout stages, extra time and penalty shoot-out are used to decide the winner if necessary, except for the third place match where penalty shoot-out (no extra time) is used to decide the winner if necessary (Regulations Article 75).[19]

Bracket edit

 
Quarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
 
          
 
30 January – Yaoundé
 
 
  Mali (p)0 (5)
 
3 February – Douala (Japoma)
 
  Congo0 (4)
 
  Mali (p)0 (5)
 
31 January – Limbe
 
  Guinea0 (4)
 
  Guinea1
 
7 February – Yaoundé
 
  Rwanda0
 
  Mali0
 
31 January – Douala (Réunification)
 
  Morocco2
 
  Morocco3
 
3 February – Limbe
 
  Zambia1
 
  Morocco4
 
30 January – Douala (Japoma)
 
  Cameroon 0 Third place match
 
  DR Congo1
 
6 February – Douala (Réunification)
 
  Cameroon2
 
  Guinea2
 
 
  Cameroon0
 

Quarter-finals edit

Mali  0–0 (a.e.t.)  Congo
Report
Penalties
5–4
Referee: Peter Waweru (Kenya)

DR Congo  1–2  Cameroon
Report
Referee: Mohamed Maarouf Eid Mansour (Egypt)

Morocco  3–1  Zambia
Report
Referee: Pacifique Ndabihawenimana (Burundi)

Guinea  1–0  Rwanda
Report
Referee: Samir Guezzaz (Morocco)

Semi-finals edit

Mali  0–0 (a.e.t.)  Guinea
Report
Penalties
5–4
Referee: Mahmoud El Banna (Egypt)

Morocco  4–0  Cameroon
Report
Referee: Jean Ngambo (DR Congo)

Third place match edit

Guinea  2–0  Cameroon
Report
Referee: Lahlou Benbraham (Algeria)

Final edit

Mali  0–2  Morocco
Report
Referee: Peter Waweru (Kenya)

Goalscorers edit

There were 62 goals scored in 32 matches, for an average of 1.94 goals per match.

5 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal

Awards edit

The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament:

Total Man of the Competition
  Soufiane Rahimi[27]
Top Scorer
  Soufiane Rahimi
(5 goals)[27]
Best Goalkeeper
  Anas Zniti
Best Young Player
  Morlaye Sylla[28]
Best Coach
  Hussein Ammouta (  Morocco)[28]
CAF Fair Play Team
  Mali

Team of the Tournament edit

[28]

Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards
  Anas Zniti

Man of the match edit

Stage Team 1 Result Team 2 Man of the Match
Group stage matches
Group A Cameroon   1–0   Zimbabwe   Ako Assomo
Mali   1–0   Burkina Faso   Ibourahima Sidibe
Group B Libya   0–0   Niger   Abdoul Moumouni
DR Congo   1–0   Congo   Henock Inonga Baka
Group C Morocco   1–0   Togo   Soufiane Rahimi
Rwanda   0–0   Uganda   Fitina Omborenga
Group D Zambia   2–0   Tanzania   Collins Sikombe
Guinea   3–0   Namibia   Morlaye Sylla
Group A Cameroon   1–1   Mali   Moussa Kyabou
Burkina Faso   3–1   Zimbabwe   Ismahila Ouédraogo
Group B Libya   1–1   DR Congo   Abdullah Abdulrahman
Congo   1–1   Niger   Mick Itali Ossete
Group C Morocco   0–0   Rwanda   Abdelkrim Baadi
Uganda   1–2   Togo   Ismaïl Ouro-Agoro
Group D Zambia   1–1   Guinea   Morlaye Sylla
Namibia   0–1   Tanzania   Faridi Mussa
Group A Burkina Faso   0–0   Cameroon   Hamed Belem
Zimbabwe   0–1   Mali   Mussa Ballo
Group B Congo   1–0   Libya   Hardy Binguila
Niger   1–2   DR Congo   Ibrahim Issa
Group C Uganda   2–5   Morocco   Soufiane Rahimi
Togo   2–3   Rwanda   Jacques Tuyisenge
Group D Namibia   0–0   Zambia   Collins Sikombe
Tanzania   2–2   Guinea   Victor Kantabadouno
Knockout stage matches
Quarter-finals Mali   0–0 (a.e.t.)
(5–4 p)
  Congo   Sadio Kanoute
DR Congo   1–2   Cameroon   Ako Assomo
Morocco   3–1   Zambia   Mohammed Ali Bemammer
Guinea   1–0   Rwanda   Morlaye Sylla
Semi-finals Mali   0–0 (a.e.t.)
(5–4 p)
  Guinea   Sadio Kanoute
Morocco   4–0   Cameroon     Soufiane Rahimi
Third place match Guinea   2–0   Cameroon   Morlaye Sylla
Final Mali   0–2   Morocco   Anas Zniti

Tournament team rankings edit

As per statistical convention in football, matches decided in extra time are counted as wins and losses, while matches decided by penalty shoot-outs are counted as draws.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1   Morocco 6 5 1 0 15 3 +12 16 Champions
2   Mali 6 2 3 1 3 3 0 9 Runners-up
3   Guinea 6 3 3 0 9 3 +6 12 Third place
4   Cameroon (H) 6 2 2 2 4 8 −4 8 Fourth place
5   DR Congo 4 2 1 1 5 4 +1 7 Eliminated in
quarter-finals
6   Zambia 4 1 2 1 4 4 0 5
7   Rwanda 4 1 2 1 3 3 0 5
8   Congo 4 1 2 1 2 2 0 5
9   Burkina Faso 3 1 1 1 3 2 +1 4 Eliminated in
group stage
10   Tanzania 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
11   Togo 3 1 0 2 4 5 −1 3
12   Niger 3 0 2 1 2 3 −1 2
13   Libya 3 0 2 1 1 2 −1 2
14   Uganda 3 0 1 2 3 7 −4 1
15   Namibia 3 0 1 2 0 4 −4 1
16   Zimbabwe 3 0 0 3 1 5 −4 0
Source: CAF
(H) Hosts

References edit

  1. ^ "Decisions of CAF Executive Committee meeting – 10 September 2020". CAFOnline.com. 10 September 2020. Archived from the original on 8 March 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2020. Initially scheduled for 4-25 April 2020 and postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the final tournament of the Total African Nations Championship Cameroon 2020 will now take place on 16 January to 7 February 2021.
  2. ^ "Fixtures of CHAN 2022". CAFOnline.com. 24 March 2020. Retrieved 24 April 2020.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ "Statement on Total CHAN Cameroon 2020". CAFOnline.com. 17 March 2020. Archived from the original on 24 September 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  4. ^ "Decisions of CAF Executive Meeting – 30 June 2020". CAFOnline.com. 30 June 2020. Retrieved 1 November 2020. The final tournament has been postponed till January 2021 in Cameroon.
  5. ^ "Ethiopia officially handed mantle to host CHAN 2020". africanews. 6 February 2018. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  6. ^ "African Nations Championship: Ethiopia not ready to host 2020". BBC Sport. 11 April 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  7. ^ "Le Cameroun organisera le CHAN 2020 à la place de l'Ethiopie" [Cameroon to host CHAN 2020 instead of Ethiopia]. RFI Foot (in French). 13 April 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  8. ^ "Next CAF African Nations Championship to be held in Cameroon on April 4-25, 2020". Business In Cameroon. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  9. ^ "Interclubs competition calendar; seasons 2018/19, 2019/20 & 2020/21" (PDF). CAFOnline.com. 13 May 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 April 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  10. ^ "CAF Holds Executive Committee Meeting ahead of CAN Total U-23 Final". CAFOnline.com. 21 November 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  11. ^ "Cameroon opens gates for CHAN fans". Pan African Football. 28 December 2020. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  12. ^ "Gabon, Djibouti suspended for Total CHAN 2020". CAFOnline.com. 15 November 2017. Archived from the original on 13 September 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  13. ^ "FERWAFA -CHAN 2020 Qualifiers: Rwanda exempted from first round in new Qualifying format". Rwanda Football Federation. 3 July 2019. Archived from the original on 13 September 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
  14. ^ "Line-up complete for Total CHAN Cameroon 2020". CAFOnline.com. 20 October 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  15. ^ "CHAN 2020 : La CAF fait appel à la Libye après le boycott de la Tunisie" [CHAN 2020: CAF appeals to Libya after the boycott of Tunisia]. Foot RDC (in French). 22 January 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  16. ^ "Libya replaces Tunisia for Total CHAN Cameroon 2020". CAFOnline.com. 31 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  17. ^ "Decisions of CAF Disciplinary Board – 30 January 2020" (PDF). CAFOnline.com. 31 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  18. ^ "Fixtures finalized". CAFOnline.com. 24 February 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  19. ^ a b c "Regulations of the African Nations Championship" (PDF). CAFOnline.com. 23 May 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  20. ^ "Total CHAN Cameroon 2020: List of Referees". CAF. 9 January 2021.
  21. ^ "TOTAL CHAN CAMEROON 2020 – SELECTED REFEREES" (PDF). CAFOnline.com. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 January 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  22. ^ "Accreditation for Official Draw of the Final Tournament". CAFOnline.com. 26 January 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  23. ^ "Cameroon legends Tataw and Olembe to assist Total CHAN 2020 draw". CAFOnline.com. 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  24. ^ "Groups revealed as draw takes place in Yaounde". CAFOnline.com. 17 February 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  25. ^ "Draw Procedure of the 6th Edition of Total African Nations Championship, Cameroon 2020" (PDF). CAFOnline.com. 16 February 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 August 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  26. ^ "Fixtures of CHAN 2020" (PDF). CAFOnline.com. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
  27. ^ a b "Morocco star Rahimi wins CHAN best player, top-scorer awards". CAFOnline.com. 7 February 2021. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  28. ^ a b c "Morocco players dominate CHAN Best XI, Ammouta top coach". CAFOnline.com. 17 February 2021. Archived from the original on 17 January 2023. Retrieved 1 March 2021.

External links edit