Niger national football team

The Niger national football team[2][3] represents Niger in international football through the Nigerien Football Federation, a member of Confederation of African Football (CAF). Niger plays in the colors of the flag of Niger, white, green and orange. Their nickname comes from the Dama gazelle, native to Niger, the Hausa name of which is Meyna or Ménas[4] The Dama appears on their badge in the colors of the national flag. [5][6]

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Niger women's national football team.
Niger
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Ménas
AssociationFédération Nigerienne de Football (FENIFOOT)
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationWAFU (West Africa)
Head coachJean-Michel Cavalli
CaptainKassaly Daouda
Most capsKassaly Daouda (89)
Top scorerVictorien Adebayor (19)
Home stadiumStade Général Seyni Kountché
FIFA codeNIG
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 123 Decrease 1 (6 April 2023)[1]
Highest68 (November 1994)
Lowest196 (August 2002)
First international
 Chad 2–2 Niger 
(Abidjan, Ivory Coast; 25 December 1961)
Biggest win
 Niger 7–1 Mauritania 
(Niamey, Niger; 12 October 1990)
Biggest defeat
 Congo 10–0 Niger 
(Abidjan, Ivory Coast; 27 December 1961)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances2 (first in 2012)
Best resultGroup stage (2012, 2013)
African Nations Championship
Appearances4 (first in 2011)
Best resultFourth place (2022)

History

Although one of the less successful sides in the strong West Africa region, Niger has produced a couple of noteworthy runs in qualifying tournaments.

One of their best performances was in the 1982 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in which Niger eliminated Somalia and Togo on the away goals rule, but were beaten by Algeria in the third round where only eight teams were left. Notable players in this run included Jacques Komlan, Hassane Adamou and Moussa Kanfideni.

In 1990, they set a record by thrashing Mauritania 7–1 in continental qualifiers, the highest positive score margin for the Mena.

In the 2004 African Nations Cup qualifiers, Niger won all their home games (including a win over Guinea) to finish on nine points, just three short of qualification.

The Niger squad is also plagued by financial concerns, which have caused them to withdraw from international tournaments on more than one occasion. The Nigerien Football Federation would have turned to fundraising to pay for their trip to the 2010 African Cup of Nations in Angola, had they qualified.[7]

On 10 October 2010, Niger earned a shock 1–0 win over Egypt at home in the 2012 African Cup of Nations qualification.

Despite a failed run for AFCON 2010, Niger hosted and won the UEMOA Tournament in November 2010, and followed up with their first ever qualification for the African Nations Championship in February 2011.[8]

After home wins over South Africa and Sierra Leone, on 8 October 2011 Niger qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in its history, despite losing 3–0 in Egypt.[9][10] Niger, South Africa and Sierra Leone all ended with nine points, but Niger qualified thanks to their superior head-to-head record against their rivals.

At the 2012 African Cup of Nations, Niger was placed in Group C alongside co-hosts Gabon, Tunisia and Morocco. In their opening match, Niger lost 2–0 to Gabon, while against Tunisia in Libreville, Niger trailed 1–0 on an early goal from Youssef Msakni in which he dribbled his way through for a fine goal after just four minutes. William N'Gounou, however, then made history by scoring Niger's first ever goal at the African Cup of Nations. A 1–1 draw looked likely, but Issam Jemâa's goal would eliminate Niger from the tournament. In the final match, Niger faced Morocco in a match featuring two sides already eliminated from the tournament. Younès Belhanda scored on an assist from Marouane Chamakh just 11 minutes from time to give Morocco a 1–0 victory.[11]

Later in 2012, Niger repeated its success in African Nations Cup qualifiers by beating Guinea in a two-legged series to qualify for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations. Guinea won the first match 1–0, but Niger won 2–0 in the second leg. Goalscorers Mohamed Chikoto and Issoufou Boubacar had sent Niger to another African Cup of Nations tournament.[12]

In their first match at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, Niger lost 1–0 to Mali at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth. Mali captain Seydou Keita handed his nation the hard-fought victory five minutes before the end of the encounter. Niger then earned their first point ever at the African Cup of nations after holding DR Congo to a 0–0 draw. In the third match, Ghana outclassed Niger 3–0 to reach the quarter-finals as Group B winners.[13] Niger finished bottom of the group.

On 22 May 2014, Niger played a friendly match against Ukraine, marking the first ever match against a European nation. Oumarou Bale scored in the 56th minute, cancelling out a 20th-minute goal from Ivan Ordets before Ukraine won on a goal from Taras Stepanenko as the match finished 2–1.[14][15]

Results and fixtures
Main article: Niger national football team results (2020–present)

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2022
4 June 2023 AFCON qualification Niger  1–1  Tanzania Cotonou, Benin
17:00
  • Sosah 26'
 Report
  • Mpole 1'
 Stadium: Stade de l'Amitié
Referee: Komlanvi Aklassou (Togo)
8 June 2023 AFCON qualification Uganda  1–1  Niger Entebbe, Uganda
16:00 UTC+3
Report
Stadium: St. Mary's Stadium-Kitende
Referee: Tsegay Mogos Teklu (Eritrea)
23 September Friendly Egypt  3–0  Niger Alexandria, Egypt
 Stadium: Borg El Arab Stadium
2 November Friendly Algeria  2–0  Niger
20 November Friendly Gabon  3–1  Niger Antalya, Turkey
Stadium: Atilla Vehbi Konuk Tesisleri
Referee: Zorbay Küçük (Turkey)
21 December Friendly Ajaccio 2–0  Niger Ajaccio, France
15:00 UTC+1
Stadium: Stade François Coty

2023
6 January Friendly Senegal  0–0  Niger Tabarka, Tunisia
13:00 CET (UTC+1) Report Stadium: La Cigale Sport Complex
23 March 2023 AFCON qualification Algeria  2–1  Niger Algiers, Algeria
22:00 UTC+1
Report
Stadium: Nelson Mandela Stadium
Referee: Mahmood Ismail (Sudan)
27 March 2023 AFCON qualification Niger  0–1  Algeria Tunis, Tunisia
17:00 UTC+1 Report
Stadium: Hammadi Agrebi Stadium
Referee: Boubou Traoré (Mali)
June 2023 AFCON qualification Tanzania  v  Niger Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Stadium: National Stadium
September 2023 AFCON qualification Niger  v  Uganda

Coaching history

Players

Current squad
No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Mahamdou Tanja (1996-07-05) 5 July 1996 12 0 Niger AS FAN
1GK Oumarou Soumaila (1987-10-24) 24 October 1987 3 0 Niger US GN
1GK Issaka Oumarou Moussa (1990-12-02) 2 December 1990 0 0 Niger Douanes
2DF Abdoulaye Boureima Katkoré (1993-03-26) 26 March 1993 52 0 Niger Douanes
2DF Adamou Ibrahim Djibo (1998-08-13) 13 August 1998 12 1 Niger Nigelec
2DF Yacouba Diori (1997-09-08) 8 September 1997 11 0 Spain Castellón
2DF Abdoulaye Karim Doudou (1998-09-25) 25 September 1998 11 0 Nigeria Dakkada
2DF Rahim Alhassane (2002-01-01) 1 January 2002 6 0 Spain Rayo Majadahonda
2DF Zakariya Souleymane (1994-12-29) 29 December 1994 5 0 France Lyon Duchère
2DF Najeeb Yakubu (2000-05-01) 1 May 2000 4 0 Finland Ilves
3MF Ali Mohamed (1995-10-07) 7 October 1995 39 0 Israel Maccabi Haifa
3MF Ousmane Diabaté (1994-07-09) 9 July 1994 35 0 Libya Al-Olympique
3MF Abdoul Madjid Moumouni (1994-05-10) 10 May 1994 26 0 Iraq Al-Shorta
3MF Amadou Sabo (2000-05-30) 30 May 2000 16 2 Tunisia Club Africain
3MF Abdoul Moumouni (2002-08-07) 7 August 2002 11 0 Moldova Sheriff Tiraspol
3MF Ousseini Badamassi (1997-04-21) 21 April 1997 10 1 Democratic Republic of the Congo Mazembe
3MF Hassane Adamou (2000-06-26) 26 June 2000 4 0 Spain Burgos Promesas
3MF Moussa Kassa Moudou (1999-11-11) 11 November 1999 4 0 Niger US GN
4FW Victorien Adebayor (1996-11-12) 12 November 1996 53 19 Morocco Berkane
4FW Mohamed Wonkoye (1994-05-19) 19 May 1994 45 5 Guinea Horoya
4FW Abdoul Aziz Ibrahim (1996-03-15) 15 March 1996 27 1 Niger Douanes
4FW Issa Djibrilla (1996-01-01) 1 January 1996 19 4 Azerbaijan Zira
4FW Boubacar Hainikoye (1998-10-07) 7 October 1998 21 3 Niger US GN
4FW Daniel Sosah (1998-09-21) 21 September 1998 15 4 Ukraine Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih
4FW Zakari Junior Lambo (1999-01-19) 19 January 1999 10 1 Belgium La Louvière
4FW Seybou Koita (1994-04-15) 15 April 1994 7 0 Oman Oman Club

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for Niger in the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Kassaly Daouda (1983-08-19) 19 August 1983 89 0 Nigeria Katsina United vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
GK Naim Van Attenhoven (2003-01-31) 31 January 2003 7 0 France Valenciennes vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
DF Abdoul Garba (2000-07-18) 18 July 2000 34 1 Niger Douanes 2022 African Nations Championship
DF Ismael Issaka Souley (2000-07-18) 18 July 2000 8 0 Niger Police 2022 African Nations Championship
DF Abdoul Rafiu Kassali (1998-09-30) 30 September 1998 3 0 Niger US GN 2022 African Nations Championship
DF Abdoul Razak Seyni (1990-01-01) 1 January 1990 19 1 Niger Nigelec vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
DF Djibrilla Ibrahim (2002-03-02) 2 March 2002 4 0 Croatia Rijeka vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
MF Abdoul Kader Arzakou (2000-12-31) 31 December 2000 7 0 Niger Douanes 2022 African Nations Championship
MF Fayçal Iboun (1994-01-03) 3 January 1994 7 0 Niger Police 2022 African Nations Championship
MF Youssouf Oumarou (1993-02-16) 16 February 1993 53 4 Tunisia Monastir vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
MF Amadou Moutari (1994-01-19) 19 January 1994 50 2 Turkey Tuzlaspor vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
MF Boubacar Goumey (2000-07-14) 14 July 2000 4 0 Niger Nigelec vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
MF Moustapha Sabo (2004-09-14) 14 September 2004 0 0 Niger AS SONIDEP vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
FW Mossi Issa Moussa (1993-01-24) 24 January 1993 17 4 Niger Douanes 2022 African Nations Championship
FW Mahamane Cissé (1993-12-27) 27 December 1993 38 5 Republic of the Congo Otôho vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
FW Ibrahim Marou (2000-01-01) 1 January 2000 5 0 Niger AS FAN vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022
FW Salam Boulhassan (2001-01-18) 18 January 2001 2 0 Niger Nigelec vs.  Uganda, 8 June 2022

DEC Player refused to join the team after the call-up.
INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
PRE Preliminary squad.
RET Player has retired from international football.
SUS Suspended from the national team.

Records
As of 27 March 2023[18]
Players in bold are still active with Niger.
Most appearances
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1Kassaly Daouda8902002–present
2Koffi Dan Kowa6742008–2018
3Moussa Maâzou54132008–2021
4Victorien Adebayor53192015–present
Lassina Konaté5312006–2016
Youssouf Oumarou5342013–present
Souleymane Sacko5332007–2019
8Abdoulaye Katkoré5202014–present
9Amadou Moutari5022012–present
10Mohamed Chikoto4822008–2016
Top goalscorers
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1Victorien Adebayor19530.362015–present
2Moussa Maâzou13540.242008–2021
3Kamilou Daouda10370.272007–2019
4Mounkaila Ide Barkire7130.541992–1998
5Zakari Lambo6100.61990–1995
6Mahamane Cissé5380.132013–present
Mohamed Wonkoye5450.112012–present
8Daniel Sosah4150.272021–present
Moussa Yahaya4160.251992–1998
Mossi Issa Moussa4170.242012–present
Issa Djibrilla4190.212020–present
Modibo Sidibé4270.152010–2019
Youssouf Oumarou4530.082013–present
Koffi Dan Kowa4670.062008–2018

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup record
FIFA World Cup FIFA World Cup qualification
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930Part of  FrancePart of  France
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962 did not enter did not enter
England 1966
Mexico 1970
West Germany 1974
Argentina 1978 did not qualify 2 1 0 1 3 6
Spain 1982 6 2 2 2 4 7
Mexico 1986 Withdrew Withdrew
Italy 1990 did not enter did not enter
United States 1994 did not qualify 4 2 1 1 3 2
France 1998 Withdrew Withdrew
South Korea Japan 2002 did not enter did not enter
Germany 2006 did not qualify 2 0 0 2 0 7
South Africa 2010 6 1 0 5 5 11
Brazil 2014 6 1 1 4 6 12
Russia 2018 4 2 1 1 6 3
Qatar 2022 62131317
Canada Mexico United States 2026 to be determined to be determined
Total 0/22 36 11 6 19 40 65

Africa Cup of Nations record
Main article: Niger at the Africa Cup of Nations
Africa Cup of Nations record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Sudan 1957Part of  France
Egypt 1959
Ethiopia 1962Not affiliated to CAF
Ghana 1963
Tunisia 1965
Ethiopia 1968 did not enter
Sudan 1970 did not qualify
Cameroon 1972
Egypt 1974 Withdrew
Ethiopia 1976 did not qualify
Ghana 1978 Withdrew
Nigeria 1980
Libya 1982 did not enter
Ivory Coast 1984 did not qualify
Egypt 1986 did not enter
Morocco 1988
Algeria 1990
Senegal 1992 did not qualify
Tunisia 1994
South Africa 1996 Withdrew during qualifying
Burkina Faso 1998 Disqualified for withdrawing in 1996
Ghana Nigeria 2000 to
Angola 2010		 did not qualify
Gabon Equatorial Guinea 2012 Group stage15th300315
South Africa 2013 15th301204
Equatorial Guinea 2015 did not qualify
Gabon 2017
Egypt 2019
Cameroon 2021
Ivory Coast 2023 to be determined
Guinea 2025
TotalGroup stage2/33601519
Niger national team against Morocco, 9 February 2011

African Nations Championship record
African Nations Championship
Appearances: 4
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
Ivory Coast 2009did not qualify
Sudan 2011Quarter-finals7th421133
South Africa 2014did not qualify
Rwanda 2016Group stage16th3012311
Morocco 2018did not qualify
Cameroon 2020Group stage12th302123
Algeria 2022Fourth place4th521236
Total Fourth place 4/7 15 4 5 6 11 23

Head-to-head record
As of 19 November 2019
Opponent Games Wins Draws Losses Goals For Goals Against Goal Differential
 Algeria 5 1 0 4 1 14 −13
 Angola 2 0 0 2 2 5 −3
 Benin 15 3 5 7 17 24 −7
 Botswana 3 2 1 0 4 2 +2
 Burundi 1 1 0 0 3 1 +2
 Burkina Faso 15 3 5 7 13 22 −9
 Cameroon 3 0 1 2 0 4 −4
 Central African Republic 2 0 1 1 3 5 −2
 Chad 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Congo 4 0 1 3 3 10 −7
 DR Congo 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
 Ivory Coast 13 0 2 11 9 29 −20
 Egypt 6 1 1 4 2 16 −14
 Equatorial Guinea 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Ethiopia 3 1 0 2 3 4 −1
 Eswatini 2 1 1 0 2 1 +1
 Gabon 6 1 0 5 5 13 −8
 Gambia 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Ghana 11 0 1 10 4 38 −34
 Guinea 7 3 0 4 8 11 −3
 Lesotho 2 1 0 1 3 3 0
 Liberia 7 3 1 3 7 10 −3
 Libya 4 0 3 1 4 8 −4
 Madagascar 1 0 0 1 2 6 −4
 Mali 8 1 2 5 4 10 −6
 Mauritania 5 3 2 0 10 3 +7
 Morocco 7 1 0 6 2 16 −14
 Namibia 1 1 0 0 2 1 +1
 Nigeria 3 0 0 3 1 7 −6
 Senegal 5 1 1 3 3 6 −3
 Sierra Leone 6 3 0 3 11 15 −4
 Somalia 2 0 2 0 1 1 0
 South Africa 2 1 0 1 2 3 −1
 Togo 9 3 3 3 13 14 −1
 Tunisia 3 0 0 3 2 4 −2
 Uganda 5 2 1 2 6 6 0
 Ukraine 1 0 0 1 1 2 −1
 United Arab Emirates 1 0 0 1 0 4 −4
38 Countries174373899156320−164

References
  1. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 6 April 2023. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  2. Orange 2012 Afcon qualifiers :130 Million FCFA for the Menas Archived 2011-11-09 at the Wayback Machine. 22/05/2011 StarAfrica sports.
  3. Menas to test Pharaohs form. Confederation of African Football. 10-09-2010
  4. Dama Gazelle Nanger dama. Sahara Conservation Fund, 2007, 2011.
  5. "CAN 2019 : la liste du Niger contre l'Egypte sans Maazou". Afrik-Foot. March 21, 2019.
  6. "Niger team of 2019". national-football-teams.com. National Football Teams.
  7. "Project MENA is dedicated to assisting MENA, the Niger national soccer team. The project aimed to raise enough money to send the team to compete for the 2010 African Cup in Angola". Archived from the original on 2008-04-26.
  8. CHAN 2011 : Un Niger héroïque mais éliminé par le Soudan – Football/CHAN 2011 – RFI 2011-02-19
  9. "Niger in historic qualification despite Cairo loss". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 2011-10-08. Retrieved 2011-10-08.
  10. Fixtures, results and tables for the qualifiers for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations to be co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. BBC Sport.
  11. "Niger 0-1 Morocco". BBC Sport.
  12. "2013 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers - Qualifier Rounds - MTNFootball". Archived from the original on 2012-10-09. Retrieved 2012-10-16.
  13. "Ghana cruises into African Cup quarters". GhanaWeb. January 28, 2013.
  14. "Страница не найдена". shakhtar.com.
  15. "Ukraine-Niger | European Qualifiers".
  16. "Martial named Niger coach". BBC News. 26 November 2002.
  17. "Le sélectionneur Jean-Michel Cavalli a officialisé la liste des joueurs du Mena National pour la double confrontation décisive Niger- Algérie". Fédération Nigérienne De Football - Facebook. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  18. "Niger". National Football Teams.
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