Benin national football team

Benin

Nickname(s)	Les Guépards (The Cheetahs) Formerly: Les Ecureuils (The Squirrels)
Association	Benin Football Federation
Confederation	CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation	WAFU (West Africa)
Head coach	Gernot Rohr
Captain	Steve Mounié
Most caps	Stéphane Sessègnon (89)
Top scorer	Stéphane Sessègnon (24)
Home stadium	Stade de l'Amitié
FIFA code	BEN
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	95 6 (24 October 2024)[1]
Highest	59 (November–December 2009, April 2010)
Lowest	165 (July 1996)
First international
Dahomey 0–1 Nigeria  (Dahomey; 8 November 1959)
Biggest win
Dahomey 7–0 Mauritania  (Abidjan, Ivory Coast; 27 December 1961)
Biggest defeat
Nigeria 10–1 Dahomey  (Nigeria; 28 November 1959)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances	4 (first in 2004)
Best result	Quarter-finals (2019)

The Benin national football team (French: Équipe nationale de Football du Benin), nicknamed Les Guépards (The Cheetahs), represents Benin in men's international association football and are controlled by the Benin Football Federation. They were known as Dahomey until 1975, when the Republic of Dahomey became Benin.

Benin have been affiliated with FIFA since 1962 and are a member of the Confederation of African Football since 1969. They have never qualified for the World Cup, but have participated at four Africa Cups of Nations in 2004, 2008, 2010 and 2019, never placing in the top two in the group stage at all of these occasions. However, Benin has a unique record as the country is the first national team to reach the quarter-finals of an AFCON edition without gaining a single win in their AFCON history.

Benin hosted its first official international match on 8 November 1959, a 1–0 loss to Nigeria. The match was played while the country was still a French dependency, prior to its independence on 1 August 1960.

Benin qualified for the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations, their first AFCON in history. However, they lost all three matches to South Africa, Morocco and again Nigeria. Benin's only goal was scored by Moussa Latoundji against Nigeria.

History repeated itself again in 2008, when Benin lost to Mali, the Ivory Coast and yet again Nigeria. They also scored only once through Razak Omotoyossi in the 4–1 defeat to the Ivory Coast.

In 2010, the Benin Football Federation's president Anjorin Moucharaf was arrested. Members of the BFF decried the imprisonment, saying that Moucharaf had been unjustly accused of fraud, leading to 12 of the 15 board members resigning in protest.^[3]

In the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, Benin topped their group in the second round. They started with a defeat to Angola but went on to win the next four matches and ensure their qualification before the final day. In the third round of the qualifiers, Benin finished second in their group, three points behind Ghana. Despite not qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Benin's second-place finish ensured their qualification to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, where they drew against Mozambique to receive their first ever point at the AFCON. The Squirrels then lost their other two matches against Nigeria and defending champions Egypt to finish third in their group and fail to progress to the next round. After this performance, on 8 February 2010, the BFF, not willing to accept a group stage exit for the third time in a row, dissolved the national team and sacked coach Michel Dussuyer, as well as the rest of his staff.^[4][5] Dussuyer was unaware that he had been sacked and claimed that he had not done anything wrong.^[6] The team became an innocent victim of enraged African countries failing to accept defeat at major tournaments and disbanding their national teams in the early 2010s, along with Nigeria, the team that Benin have met in the group stage of all three of their AFCONs before their disbandment, which were suspended for two years by President Goodluck Jonathan after the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

In the second round of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, Benin were placed in Group H with Algeria, Mali and Rwanda. They finished third in their group, failing to advance to the next round.

On 9 May 2016, FIFA suspended Benin for unknown reasons.

At the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, despite advancing only as the third-best third-placed team, Benin reunited with Dussuyer, reached the quarter-finals, where they lost to eventual runners-up Senegal, with a shock win over tournament favourites Morocco on penalties.

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

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

Position	Name
Head coach	Gernot Rohr
Assistant coaches	Moustapha Tchawogbé Gervais Adjanohoun
Goalkeeping coach	Apollinaire Gbadamassi
Fitness coach	Ibrahim Kpadenou
Match Analyst	Christophe Fagbohoun
Doctors	Dr. Hervé Gbalazou Dr. Michel Djogbenou
Physiotherapists	Alain Gbenou Thomas Hounkpè Ousmane Houssou Maxime Tchouassi
Team coordinator	Bernard Gbedjissi
Technical director	Mohamed Agbassi

The following players were called up for the 2025 AFCON qualification matches against Rwanda on 11 and 15 October 2024.^[7]

Caps and goals correct as of 15 October 2024, after the match against Rwanda

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Saturnin Allagbé	(1993-11-22) 22 November 1993 (age 31)	46	0	Botev Vratsa
	1GK	Marcel Dandjinou	(1998-06-25) 25 June 1998 (age 26)	10	0	JDR Stars
	1GK	Mariano Tchinonvi	(2004-07-29) 29 July 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Loto-Popo
	2DF	Olivier Verdon	(1995-10-05) 5 October 1995 (age 29)	38	0	Ludogorets Razgrad
	2DF	Cédric Hountondji	(1994-01-19) 19 January 1994 (age 30)	32	2	Angers
	2DF	Rodrigue Fassinou	(1999-05-22) 22 May 1999 (age 25)	16	0	Loto-Popo
	2DF	Rachid Moumini	(2004-10-27) 27 October 2004 (age 20)	14	1	Ayema
	2DF	Yohan Roche	(1997-07-07) 7 July 1997 (age 27)	14	1	Petrolul Ploiești
	2DF	Mohamed Tijani	(1997-07-10) 10 July 1997 (age 27)	13	0	Yverdon-Sport
	2DF	Rabiou Sankamao	(2003-10-12) 12 October 2003 (age 21)	3	0	ASPAC
	2DF	Tamimou Ouorou	(2003-05-03) 3 May 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Hatta Club
	3MF	Sessi D'Almeida	(1995-11-20) 20 November 1995 (age 29)	38	1	Apollon Limassol
	3MF	Junior Olaitan	(2002-05-09) 9 May 2002 (age 22)	28	4	Troyes
	3MF	Mattéo Ahlinvi	(1999-07-02) 2 July 1999 (age 25)	24	0	Västerås SK
	3MF	Dodo Dokou	(2004-05-04) 4 May 2004 (age 20)	14	1	Smouha
	3MF	Hassane Imourane	(2003-04-08) 8 April 2003 (age 21)	13	1	Modern Future
	3MF	Mariano Ahouangbo	(2002-11-16) 16 November 2002 (age 22)	3	0	AS Soliman
	3MF	Gislain Ahoudo	(1999-07-02) 2 July 1999 (age 25)	3	0	Dadjè FC d'Aplahoué
	3MF	Romaric Amoussou	(2000-12-10) 10 December 2000 (age 23)	3	0	Coton Sport
	3MF	Samadou Attidjikou	(2004-02-02) 2 February 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Al Masry
	4FW	Jodel Dossou	(1992-03-17) 17 March 1992 (age 32)	67	10	Sochaux
	4FW	Steve Mounié	(1994-09-29) 29 September 1994 (age 30)	57	19	FC Augsburg
	4FW	Tosin Aiyegun	(1998-06-26) 26 June 1998 (age 26)	16	3	Lorient
	4FW	Andréas Hountondji	(2002-07-11) 11 July 2002 (age 22)	11	2	Burnley
	4FW	Steve Traoré	(1998-02-18) 18 February 1998 (age 26)	4	0	Lokomotiv Sofia

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

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Karim Abdoul Aziz	(2005-08-13) 13 August 2005 (age 19)	0	0	Dadje	v.  Libya; 10 September 2024
GK	Serge Obassa	(1996-06-30) 30 June 1996 (age 28)	2	0	AS Cotonou	v.  Senegal; 26 March 2024
DF	David Kiki	(1993-11-25) 25 November 1993 (age 30)	51	0	FCSB	v.  Libya; 10 September 2024
DF	Youssouf Assogba	(2001-08-21) 21 August 2001 (age 23)	20	0	Bordeaux	v.  Senegal; 26 March 2024
MF	Ricardo Prince Dossou	(2006-07-20) 20 July 2006 (age 18)	4	0	ASVO	v.  Nigeria; 10 June 2024
MF	Lenny Pirringuel	(2004-03-02) 2 March 2004 (age 20)	1	0	Quevilly-Rouen	v.  Senegal; 26 March 2024
MF	Cebio Soukou	(1992-10-02) 2 October 1992 (age 32)	24	4	Bandırmaspor	v.  Lesotho; 21 November 2023
MF	Rodrigue Kossi	(2000-07-11) 11 July 2000 (age 24)	12	0	Al-Taraji Club	v.  Lesotho; 21 November 2023
FW	Samson Akinyoola	(2000-03-03) 3 March 2000 (age 24)	2	0	Zamalek	v.  Nigeria; 10 June 2024
FW	David Tchétchao	(2003-09-29) 29 September 2003 (age 21)	1	0	ASVO	v.  Nigeria; 10 June 2024
FW	Charbel Gomez	(2001-01-27) 27 January 2001 (age 23)	18	0	Samgurali Tsqaltubo	v.  Senegal; 26 March 2024
FW	Stéphane Sessègnon	(1984-06-01) 1 June 1984 (age 40)	89	24	Sirens	v.  Lesotho; 21 November 2023

As of 15 October 2024^[8]

Players in bold are still active with Benin.

Most appearances

Rank	Player	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Stéphane Sessègnon	89	24	2004–present
2	Khaled Adénon	86	2	2006–2023
3	Mickaël Poté	69	10	2008–2022
4	Jodel Dossou	67	10	2013–present
5	Damien Chrysostome	58	0	2002–2011
6	Steve Mounié	57	19	2015–present
7	Jocelyn Ahouéya	55	3	2003–2013
	Razak Omotoyossi	55	21	2004–2016
9	Romuald Boco	52	1	2004–2013
10	David Kiki	51	0	2015–present
	Séïdath Tchomogo	51	6	2003–2014

Top goalscorers

Rank	Player	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Stéphane Sessègnon	24	89	0.27	2004–present
2	Razak Omotoyossi	21	55	0.38	2004–2016
3	Steve Mounié	19	57	0.33	2015–present
4	Oumar Tchomogo	15	34	0.44	1995–2008
5	Jodel Dossou	10	67	0.15	2013–present
	Mickaël Poté	10	69	0.14	2008–2022
7	Moussa Latoundji	6	21	0.29	1993–2004
	Mouritala Ogunbiyi	6	47	0.13	1998–2019
	Séïdath Tchomogo	6	51	0.12	2003–2014
10	Léon Bessan	5	20	0.25	1995–2007
	Anicet Adjamossi	5	48	0.1	2002–2013

FIFA World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930 to 1958	Not a FIFA member; part of France									Not a FIFA member; part of France
as  Dahomey										as  Dahomey
1962	Not a FIFA member									Not a FIFA member
1966 and 1970	Did not enter									Did not enter
1974	Did not qualify									3	0	0	3	1	10
as /  Benin										as /  Benin
1978 and 1982	Did not enter									Did not enter
1986	Did not qualify									2	0	0	2	0	6
1990	Did not enter									Did not enter
1994	Did not qualify									6	1	0	5	3	19
1998	Did not enter									Did not enter
2002	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	1	2
2006										12	2	3	7	13	26
2010										12	7	1	4	18	14
2014										6	2	2	2	8	9
2018										2	1	0	1	2	3
2022										6	3	1	2	5	4
2026	To be determined									4	2	1	1	4	3
2030										To be determined
2034
Total	−	0/15	−	−	−	−	−	−		54	18	8	28	55	96

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	Did not enter
1968
1970
1972	Did not qualify
1974	Withdrew
1976
1978	Did not enter
1980	Did not qualify
1982	Did not enter
1984	Did not qualify
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996	Withdrew
1998	Did not qualify
2000
2002
2004	Group stage	16th	3	0	0	3	1	8
2006	Did not qualify
2008	Group stage	15th	3	0	0	3	1	7
2010		14th	3	0	1	2	2	5
2012	Did not qualify
2013
2015
2017
2019	Quarter-finals	8th	5	0	4	1	3	4
2021	Did not qualify
2023
2025	Qualified
2027	To be determined
2029
Total	Quarter-finals	4/34	14	0	5	9	7	24

• UEMOA Tournament
  • Runners-up (1): 2013

• Football au Bénin (in French)
• Benin at CAF
• Benin at FIFA
• Le miroir du football béninois! (in French)