2012 Africa Cup of Nations

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2012 Africa Cup of Nations
  • Copa Africana de Naciones 2012
  • Campeonato Africano das Nações de 2012
  • Coupe d'Afrique des Nations 2012
  • AFCON 2012
  • CAN 2012
File:2012 Africa Cup of Nations logo.png
Tournament details
Host countriesGabon
Equatorial Guinea
Dates21 January – 12 February
Teams16 (from 5 sub-confederations)
Venue(s)4 (in 4 host cities)
Final positions
Champions Zambia (1st title)
Runners-upTemplate:Country data Cote d'Ivoire
Third place Mali
Fourth place Ghana
Tournament statistics
Matches played32
Goals scored76 (2.38 per match)
Attendance456,332 (14,260 per match)
Top scorer(s)Angola Manucho
Template:Country data CIV Didier Drogba
Template:Country data GAB Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Mali Cheick Diabaté
Template:Country data MAR Houssine Kharja
Zambia Christopher Katongo
Zambia Emmanuel Mayuka
(3 goals each)
Best playerZambia Christopher Katongo
Fair play awardTemplate:Country data CIV
← 2010
2013 →

The 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 28th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the football championship of Africa organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The competition was co-hosted in two countries; it took place in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon from 21 January to 12 February 2012. The bidding process for hosting the tournament ended in September 2006; the continental football federation, CAF, selected Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

The matches were played in four stadiums in four host cities around the two countries, with the final played at the newly built Stade d'Angondjé in Gabon's largest city, Libreville. Fourteen teams were selected for participation via a continental qualification tournament that began in July 2010.

The 2012 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations was one of the most politically charged sports events to take place. Libya (Libyan Civil War) and Tunisia's (Tunisian revolution) national teams qualified for the tournament despite a political backdrop which saw both countries' autocratic rulers ousted from power. Players of the Libyan and Tunisian national teams had fought on the front lines in their respective campaigns. The traditional footballing nations such as reigning champions Egypt (also affected by political events), Cameroon, Nigeria, Algeria and South Africa had failed to qualify. Players from third-placed Mali pleaded for the insurgency in the north of their country to end.

In the first round of the tournament finals, the teams competed in round-robin groups of four teams for points, with the top two teams in each group proceeding. These eight teams advanced to the knockout stage, where three rounds of play decided which teams would participate in the final. Both host nations, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, were eliminated from the competition at the quarter final stage.

In the final, unfancied Zambia, the Southern African regional body's 2009 COSAFA Cup runner-up, defeated third-time finalists Côte d'Ivoire after a dramatic penalty shootout in the final,[1] giving Zambia their first continental title, becoming the fourteenth nation to win the tournament.[2] The Zambian team dedicated their win to the members of the national team who died in a plane crash near the final's venue in Libreville in 1993.[3]

Bids shortlist

The five countries who were shortlisted to host the tournament including one joint bid:

  • Angola
  • Gabon / Equatorial Guinea
  • Libya
  • Nigeria (reserve hosts)

Gabon and Equatorial Guinea won the right to host the tournament after defeating a Nigerian bid along with two other bid winning nations, Angola and Libya. Bids from Mozambique, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Senegal were rejected. For the first time in CAF history, the hosts of three successive tournaments were chosen at the same time; Angola was chosen to host in 2010, Gabon/Equatorial Guinea were chosen as hosts for the 2012 cup and Libya was originally scheduled to host the 2013 edition.[4] In light of the Libyan Civil War, Libya and South Africa then traded places, with the former arranging in 2017 and the latter in 2013 instead.[5]

Qualification

The qualification process involves ten groups of four, one of which was reduced to a group of three after the withdrawal of Mauritania, and one group of five. The top team from each group goes through, as well as the second placed team from the group of five. The two best second place teams also qualify. At the end of the qualification process, fourteen teams would have qualified, as well as the two host nations. The first qualifiers were held on 1 July 2010.[6]

Qualified teams

A map of Africa showing the qualified nations, highlighted by stage reached.
Country Qualified as Qualification date Appearance in finals Previous best performance Regional body FIFA ranking1 Continental ranking1
 Angola JWGroup J Winner 048 October 2011 066th 40Quarterfinals (2008, 2010) COSAFA 85 19
 Botswana KWGroup K Winner 0126 March 2011 011st 20none COSAFA 94 21
 Burkina Faso FWGroup F Winner 033 September 2011 088th 50Fourth place (1998) WAFU 66 14
Template:Country data CIV HWGroup H Winner 025 June 2011 1919th 80Winner (1992) WAFU 18 1
 Equatorial Guinea AACo-host 0029 July 2007 011st 20none UNIFFAC 151 41
Template:Country data GAB AACo-host 0029 July 2007 055th 30Quarterfinals (1996) UNIFFAC 91 20
Template:Country data GHA IWGroup I Winner 048 October 2011 1818th 90Winner (1963, 1965, 1978, 1982) WAFU 26 2
 Guinea BWGroup B Winner 048 October 2011 1010th 60Second place (1976) WAFU 79 17
 Libya RU Top Two Runner-Up 048 October 2011 033rd 60Second place (1982) UNAF 63 13
 Mali AWGroup A Winner 048 October 2011 077th 60Second place (1972) WAFU 69 15
Template:Country data MAR DWGroup D Winner 059 October 2011 1414th 80Winner (1976) UNAF 61 12
Template:Country data NIG GWGroup G Winner 048 October 2011 011st 20none WAFU 98 22
 Senegal EWGroup E Winner 033 September 2011 1212th 60Second place (2002) WAFU 43 5
Template:Country data SUD RU Top Two Runner-Up 059 October 2011 088th 80Winner (1970) CECAFA 120 30
 Tunisia KXGroup K Runner-up 048 October 2011 1515th 80Winner (2004) UNAF 59 10
 Zambia CWGroup C Winner 048 October 2011 1515th 70Second place (1974, 1994) COSAFA 71 16
1 FIFA World Rankings, release of 18 January 2012.

Controversies

Togo

Togo were initially banned from the 2012 and 2013 Africa Cup of Nations tournaments by CAF after they withdrew from the 2010 tournament following an attack on their team bus.[7] Togo appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, with FIFA president Sepp Blatter stepping in to mediate. The ban was subsequently lifted with immediate effect on 14 May 2010, after a meeting of the CAF Executive Committee. Togo were therefore free to play in the 2012 and 2013 qualifiers.[8]

Nigeria

On 30 June 2010, after Nigeria's exit from the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan punished the team for a poor campaign by imposing a two-year ban from international competition.[9] This would have resulted in the Nigerians missing out on both the 2012 qualifying phase and the 2012 African Cup of Nations. However, on 5 July, the Nigerian government dropped the ban after FIFA threatened to impose harsher international sanctions as a result of the government interference.[10] Nigeria competed in qualifying for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations as scheduled but failed to qualify.


Venues

The opening match, one semi-final and the third place match were held in Equatorial Guinea while the other semi-final and the final were held in Gabon.[11]

Bata, Equatorial Guinea Libreville, Gabon
Estadio de Bata
(pictured before its expansion)
Stade d'Angondjé
Capacity: 37,500 Capacity: 40,000
Bata Stadium Equatorial Guinea.JPG No image available.svg
Malabo, Equatorial Guinea Franceville, Gabon
Nuevo Estadio de Malabo Stade de Franceville
Capacity: 15,250 Capacity: 35,000
Estadio de Malabo Equatorial Guinea.JPG

Draw

The draw for the final tournament took place on 29 October 2011 at the Sipopo Conference Palace in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.[12] The draw ceremony was attended by the two presidents from the host countries, President Ali Bongo of Gabon and President Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea.[13] The draw saw the 16 qualified teams being pitted into four groups of four teams each. The two top teams from each group will qualify for the quarter finals with the winners progressing to the semi finals and final eventually.

The two hosts were automatically seeded into pot 1. The other 14 qualified teams were ranked based on their performances during the last three Africa Cup of Nations, i.e. the 2006, 2008 and 2010 editions.[14] For each of the last three African Cup of Nations final tournaments, the following system of points is adopted for the qualified countries:

Classification Points awarded
Winner 7
Runner-up 5
Losing semi-finalists 3
Losing quarter-finalists 2
Eliminated in 1st round 1

Moreover, a weighted coefficient on points was given to each of the last three editions of the Africa Cup of Nations as follows:

  • 2010 edition: points to be multiplied by 3
  • 2008 edition: points to be multiplied by 2
  • 2006 edition: points to be multiplied by 1

The teams were then divided into four pots based on the ranking. Each group contained one team from each pot.

Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4

 Equatorial Guinea (co-hosts; assigned to A1)
Template:Country data GAB (co-hosts; assigned to C1)
Template:Country data GHA (22 pts)
Template:Country data CIV (17 pts)

 Angola (11 pts)
 Tunisia (9 pts)
 Zambia (9 pts)
 Guinea (6 pts)

 Mali (5 pts)
 Senegal (5 pts)
Template:Country data MAR (3 pts)
 Burkina Faso (3 pts)

Template:Country data SUD (2 pts)
 Libya (1 pt)
 Botswana (0 pts)
Template:Country data NIG (0 pts)

Match officials

The following referees were chosen for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.[15]

Referees Linesmen

Mohamed Benouza
Djamel Haimoudi
Néant Alioum
Noumandiez Doue
Gehad Grisha
Eric Otogo-Castane
Bakary Gassama
Hamada Nampiandraza
Koman Coulibaly
Ali Lemghaifry
Rajindraparsad Seechurn
Bouchaïb El Ahrach
Badara Diatta
Eddy Maillet
Daniel Bennett
Khalid Abdel Rahman
Slim Jedidi
Janny Sikazwe

Albdelhak Etchiali
Jean-Claude Birumushahu
Evarist Menkouande
Yanoussa Moussa
Richard Bouende-Malonga
Songuifolo Yeo
Angesom Ogbamariam
Theophile Vinga
Aboubacar Doumbouya
Marwa Range
Moffat Champiti
Balla Diarra
Balkrishna Bootun
Redouane Achik
David Shaanika
Peter Edibe
Felicien Kabanda
Djibril Camara
Jason Damoo
Zakhele Siwela
Bechir Hassani

Squads

Each team's squad for the tournament consisted of 23 players; only players in these squads were eligible to take part in the tournament. Each participating national association had to submit their squad by 11 January 2012 (midnight CET). Replacement of seriously injured players was permitted until 24 hours before the team in question's first match of the tournament.[16]

Group stage

Groups A and B took place in Equatorial Guinea, while Groups C and D were held in Gabon.[17] Notably, there was not a single goalless draw during the group stage.

Tie-breaking criteria

If two or more teams end the group stage with the same number of points, their ranking is determined by the following criteria:[16]

  1. points earned in the matches between the teams concerned;
  2. goal difference in the matches between the teams concerned;
  3. number of goals scored in the matches between the teams concerned;
  4. goal difference in all group matches;
  5. number of goals scored in all group matches;
  6. fair play points system taking into account the number of yellow and red cards;
  7. drawing of lots by the organizing committee.
Key to colours in group tables
Top two placed teams advanced to the quarterfinals

All times are West Africa Time (UTC+1).

Group A

Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Zambia 3 2 1 0 5 3 +2 7
 Equatorial Guinea 3 2 0 1 3 2 +1 6
 Libya 3 1 1 1 4 4 0 4
 Senegal 3 0 0 3 3 6 −3 0
21 January 2012
Equatorial Guinea  1–0  Libya Estadio de Bata, Bata
Senegal  1–2  Zambia Estadio de Bata, Bata
25 January 2012
Libya  2–2  Zambia Estadio de Bata, Bata
Equatorial Guinea  2–1  Senegal Estadio de Bata, Bata
29 January 2012
Equatorial Guinea  0–1  Zambia Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
Libya  2–1  Senegal Estadio de Bata, Bata

Group B

2012 Africa Cup of Nations Group B

22 January 2012
Template:Country data CIV 1–0 Template:Country data SUD Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
Burkina Faso  1–2  Angola Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
26 January 2012
Template:Country data SUD 2–2  Angola Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
Template:Country data CIV 2–0  Burkina Faso Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo
30 January 2012
Template:Country data SUD 2–1  Burkina Faso Estadio de Bata, Bata
Template:Country data CIV 2–0  Angola Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo

Group C

2012 Africa Cup of Nations Group C

23 January 2012
Template:Country data GAB 2–0 Template:Country data NIG Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
Template:Country data MAR 1–2  Tunisia Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
27 January 2012
Template:Country data NIG 1–2  Tunisia Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
Template:Country data GAB 3–2 Template:Country data MAR Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
31 January 2012
Template:Country data GAB 1–0  Tunisia Stade de Franceville, Franceville
Template:Country data NIG 0–1 Template:Country data MAR Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville

Group D

2012 Africa Cup of Nations Group D

24 January 2012
Template:Country data GHA 1–0  Botswana Stade de Franceville, Franceville
Mali  1–0  Guinea Stade de Franceville, Franceville
28 January 2012
Botswana  1–6  Guinea Stade de Franceville, Franceville
Template:Country data GHA 2–0  Mali Stade de Franceville, Franceville
1 February 2012
Botswana  1–2  Mali Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
Template:Country data GHA 1–1  Guinea Stade de Franceville, Franceville
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