| Coupe d'Afrique des Nations 1972 | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Cameroon |
| Dates | 23 February – 5 March |
| Teams | 8 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 2 (in 2 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Congo (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  Mali |
| Third place | .svg.png){kind=small} Cameroon |
| Fourth place |  Zaire |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 16 |
| Goals scored | 53 (3.31 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Fantamady Keita (5 goals) |
| Best player(s) | François M'Pelé |
The 1972 African Cup of Nations was the eighth edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the association football championship of Africa (CAF). It was hosted by Cameroon, in the cities of Yaoundé and Douala. Just like in 1970, the field of eight teams was split into two groups of four. The People's Republic of the Congo won its first championship, beating Mali in the final 3−2.
Qualified teams
The 8 qualified teams are:
Squads
Venues
| Yaoundé | Douala | |
|---|---|---|
| Stade Omnisports | Stade de la Réunification | |
| Capacity: 38,720 | Capacity: 30,000 | |
) | ) |
)
Group stage
Group A
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cameroon | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 5 |
| Mali | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 |
 Kenya | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 2 |
 Togo | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 2 |
Source:
| Cameroon | 2–1 | Kenya |
|---|---|---|
N'Doga  7' N'Dongo 20' | Niva 44' |
Stade Omnisports, Yaoundé
Referee: Abdelkader Ben Jelloun (Morocco)
| Mali | 3–3 | Togo |
|---|---|---|
| B Traoré 10' F. Keita 46' B. Touré 49' | Kaolo 45' (pen.), 60' Adé 81' |
Stade Omnisports, Yaoundé
Referee: Andre Bernard Ickias (Congo)
| Togo | 1–1 | Kenya |
|---|---|---|
| Kaolo 60' | Pelé Ouma 30' |
Stade Omnisports, Yaoundé
Referee: Abdelkader Aouissi (Algeria)
Group B
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zaire | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 4 |
| Congo | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 |
 Morocco | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
 Sudan | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 2 |
Source:
| Zaire | 1–1 | Sudan |
|---|---|---|
| Mayanga 53' | Hasabu El-Sagheer 55' |
Referee: Sané Mady Diallo (Mali)
| Zaire | 2–0 | Congo |
|---|---|---|
| N'Tumba 16', 59' |
Referee: Théodore Laclé (Togo)
| Congo | 4–2 | Sudan |
|---|---|---|
| M'Bono 8', 55' M'Pelé 32' Bahamboula 46' | Abdel Wahab 37' Wahba 44' |
Referee: George Lamptey (Ghana)
Knockout stage
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 2 March – Yaoundé | ||||||
| Cameroon | 0 | |||||
| 4 March – Yaoundé | ||||||
| Congo | 1 | |||||
| Congo | 3 | |||||
| 2 March – Douala | ||||||
| Mali | 2 | |||||
| Zaire | 3 | |||||
| Mali (aet) | 4 | |||||
| Third place | ||||||
| 5 March – Yaoundé | ||||||
| Cameroon | 5 | |||||
| Zaire | 2 | |||||
Semifinals
| Zaire | 3–4 (a.e.t.) | Mali |
|---|---|---|
| N'Tumba 6' Etepé 61' Ngassebe 78' | A. Traoré 17' B. Touré 68' F. Keita 48', 92' |
Referee: George Lamptey (Ghana)
Third place match
| Cameroon | 5–2 | Zaire |
|---|---|---|
| Akono 4' (pen.) N'Dongo 31' Owona 32' Mouthé 34' N'Doga 42' | Etepé 13' Mayanga 17' |
Final
Goalscorers
- 5 goals
Fantamady Keita
- 4 goals
- 3 goals
- 2 goals
- 1 goal
CAF Team of the tournament
Goalkeeper
Allal Ben Kassou
Defenders
Abdella "Kaunda" El-Ser
Tshimen Bwanga.svg.png)
Paul Nlend- Boujemaa Benkhrif
Midfielders
Noël Birindi Minga- Mayanga Maku
- Paul-Gaston N'Dongo
- Jean-Pierre Tokoto
Forwards
- Kakoko Etepé
- François M'Pelé