1994 African Cup of Nations

1994 African Cup of Nations
كأس الأمم الإفريقية 1994
The official tournament poster.
Tournament details
Host countryTunisia
Dates26 March – 10 April
Teams12
Venue(s)3 (in 2 host cities)
Final positions
Champions Nigeria (2nd title)
Runners-up Zambia
Third place Ivory Coast
Fourth place Mali
Tournament statistics
Matches played20
Goals scored44 (2.2 per match)
Attendance267,400 (13,370 per match)
Top scorer(s)Nigeria Rashidi Yekini (5 goals)
Best player(s)Nigeria Rashidi Yekini
1992
1996

The 1994 African Cup of Nations, known as the Nescafé 1994 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship purposes, was the 19th edition of the African Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's football championship of Africa organised by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The tournament was played between 26 March and 10 April 1994 in Tunisia, taking place in the country for the second time following the 1965 editions. Tunisia host the tournament, who replaced original hosts Zaire. The Zambian team was recently formed, following an air disaster in which eighteen players and several staff members of the previous team had been killed.

The defending champions were Ivory Coast from the 1992 edition. A total of 20 matches were played, in which 44 goals were scored, at an average of 2.2 goals per match. Attendance at all stages of the tournament reached 267,400, averaging 13,370 viewers per match. Qualification took place from 14 June 1992 to 24 October 1993. Ivory Coast as title holder and Tunisia as host country automatically qualified for the final phase of the tournament. As in the 1992 edition, twelve teams, divided into four groups each comprising tree teams, took part in the competition. Host Tunisia were eliminated from the group stage, which became the biggest failure in the history of the team. The defending champions Ivory Coast were eliminated in the semi-finals after losing in penalties against Nigeria.

Nigeria won the title for the second time in their history, after beating Zambia in the final match with a score of 2–1. Ivory Coast secured third place after beating Mali in the third place match, which placed them fourth. Nigerian Rashidi Yekini scored 5 goals at the end of the tournament, so he won the top scorer award, also he won the best player award. As champions, Nigeria qualified for the 1995 King Fahd Cup in Saudi Arabia, as a representative of African continent.