Benin national football team

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.

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Benin women's national football team.
Benin
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Les Guépards
(The Cheetahs)
Formerly: Les Ecureuils (The Squirrels)
AssociationBenin Football Federation
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationWAFU (West Africa)
Head coachGernot Rohr
CaptainKhaled Adénon
Most capsStéphane Sessègnon (89)
Top scorerStéphane Sessègnon (24)
Home stadiumStade de l'Amitié
FIFA codeBEN
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 94 Decrease 1 (21 September 2023)[1]
Highest59 (November–December 2009, April 2010)
Lowest165 (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
Appearances4 (first in 2004)
Best resultQuarter-finals (2019)

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.

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.[2]

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.[3][4] Dussuyer was unaware that he had been sacked and claimed that he had not done anything wrong.[5] 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.

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

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

2023
22 March 2023 AFCON qualification Benin  1–1  Rwanda Cotonou, Benin
16:00 UTC+1
  • Mounié 82'
 Report
  • Mugisha 13'
 Stadium: Stade de l'Amitié
Referee: Joshua Bondo (Botswana)
29 March 2023 AFCON qualification Rwanda  0–3
(awarded)		  Benin Kigali, Rwanda
15:00 UTC+2
Report
Stadium: Kigali Pelé Stadium
Referee: Abdulkadir Artan (Somalia)
17 June 2023 AFCON qualification Benin  1–1  Senegal Cotonou, Benin
20:00 UTC+1
  • Moumini 78'
 Report
Stadium: Stade de l'Amitié
Referee: Jean Jacques Ndala Ngambo (DR Congo)
9 September 2023 AFCON qualification Mozambique  3–2  Benin Maputo, Mozambique
15:00 UTC+2
Report
Stadium: Estádio do Zimpeto
Referee: Mohamed Adel (Egypt)
14 October Friendly Benin  1–1  Sierra Leone
17 October Friendly Madagascar  2–1  Benin
15 November 2026 World Cup qualification South Africa  v  Benin
18 November 2026 World Cup qualification Lesotho  v  Benin

Coaching history

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2023 AFCON qualification match against Senegal on 17 June 2023.[6]

Caps and goals correct as of 29 March 2023, after the match against  Rwanda

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Saturnin Allagbé (1993-11-22) 22 November 1993 40 0 France Dijon
1GK Marcel Dandjinou (1998-06-25) 25 June 1998 2 0 South Africa JDR Stars
1GK Serge Obassa (1996-06-30) 30 June 1996 2 0 Benin Buffles
2DF Khaled Adénon (1985-07-28) 28 July 1985 84 2 Cyprus Doxa Katokopias
2DF Olivier Verdon (1995-10-05) 5 October 1995 32 0 Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad
2DF Cédric Hountondji (1994-01-19) 19 January 1994 20 0 France Angers
2DF Youssouf Assogba (2001-08-21) 21 August 2001 19 0 France Amiens
2DF Mohamed Tijani (1997-07-10) 10 July 1997 3 0 Czech Republic Zbrojovka Brno
2DF Sankamao Rabiou (2003-10-12) 12 October 2003 1 0 Benin ASPAC
2DF Brandon Agounon (1994-10-19) 19 October 1994 0 0 France Orléans
2DF Abdoul Rachid Moumini (2004-10-27) 27 October 2004 0 0 Benin Ayema
3MF Mattéo Ahlinvi (1999-07-02) 2 July 1999 15 0 Serbia Čukarički
3MF Junior Olaitan (2002-05-09) 9 May 2002 14 1 France Chamois Niortais
3MF Dokou Dodo (2004-05-04) 4 May 2004 2 0 Egypt Smouha
3MF Hassane Imourane (2003-04-08) 8 April 2003 2 0 Morocco Chabab Mohammédia
3MF Rodrigue Kossi (2000-07-11) 11 July 2000 1 0 Tunisia Club Africain
3MF Prince Ricardo Dossou (2006-07-20) 20 July 2006 0 0 Benin ASVO Benin
4FW Stéphane Sessègnon (1984-06-01) 1 June 1984 87 24 Malta Sirens
4FW Jodel Dossou (1992-03-17) 17 March 1992 54 8 France Sochaux
4FW Steve Mounié (1994-09-29) 29 September 1994 44 14 France Brest
4FW Cebio Soukou (1992-10-02) 2 October 1992 21 4 Turkey Bandırmaspor
4FW Marcellin Koukpo (1995-04-06) 6 April 1995 18 2 Algeria Constantine
4FW Tosin Aiyegun (1998-06-28) 28 June 1998 9 3 Switzerland Zürich
4FW Halid Djankpata (2005-04-13) 13 April 2005 0 0 England Everton
4FW Andréas Hountondji (2002-07-11) 11 July 2002 0 0 France Caen

Recent call-ups

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
DF David Kiki (1993-11-25) 25 November 1993 41 0 Romania Farul Constanța v.  Rwanda; 29 March 2023
DF Melvyn Doremus (1996-10-29) 29 October 1996 12 0 France Chambly v.  Rwanda; 29 March 2023
MF Jordan Adéoti (1989-03-12) 12 March 1989 47 1 France Laval v.  Rwanda; 29 March 2023
MF Sessi D'Almeida (1995-11-20) 20 November 1995 24 1 France Pau v.  Rwanda; 29 March 2023
MF Salim Bawa (1998-06-26) 26 June 1998 5 0 Cameroon Coton Sport v.  Rwanda; 29 March 2023
FW Angel Chibozo (2003-07-01) 1 July 2003 2 0 Spain Real Murcia v.  Rwanda; 29 March 2023

Player records
As of 9 September 2023[7]
Players in bold are still active with Benin.
Stéphane Sessègnon is Benin's top goalscorer and their most capped player.
Most appearances
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1Stéphane Sessègnon89242004–present
2Khaled Adénon8522006–present
3Mickaël Poté69102008–present
4Damien Chrysostome5802002–2011
5Jodel Dossou5692013–present
6Jocelyn Ahouéya5532003–2013
Razak Omotoyossi55212004–2016
8Romuald Boco5212004–2013
9Séïdath Tchomogo5142003–2014
10Anicet Adjamossi4852002–2013
Top goalscorers
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1Stéphane Sessègnon24890.272004–present
2Razak Omotoyossi21550.382004–2016
3Oumar Tchomogo15340.441995–2008
Steve Mounié15460.332015–present
5Mickaël Poté10690.142008–present
6Jodel Dossou9560.162013–present
7Moussa Latoundji6210.291993–2004
Mouritala Ogunbiyi6470.131998–2019
9Léon Bessan5200.251995–2007
Anicet Adjamossi5480.12002–2013

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup record FIFA World Cup qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Did not enter Did not enter
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962
England 1966
Mexico 1970
West Germany 1974 Did not qualify 3 0 0 3 1 10
Argentina 1978 Did not enter Did not enter
Spain 1982
Mexico 1986 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 0 6
Italy 1990 Did not enter Did not enter
United States 1994 Did not qualify 6 1 0 5 3 19
France 1998 Did not enter Did not enter
South Korea Japan 2002 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 1 2
Germany 2006 12 2 3 7 13 26
South Africa 2010 12 7 1 4 18 14
Brazil 2014 6 2 2 2 8 9
Russia 2018 2 1 0 1 2 3
Qatar 2022 6 3 1 2 5 4
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined To be determined
Total − 0/23 − − − − − − 51 16 8 27 51 93

Africa Cup of Nations
Main article: Benin at the Africa Cup of Nations
Africa Cup of Nations record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
Sudan 1957Part of  France
United Arab Republic 1959
Ethiopia 1962Not affiliated to CAF
Ghana 1963
Tunisia 1965Did not enter
Ethiopia 1968
Sudan 1970
Cameroon 1972Did not qualify
Egypt 1974Withdrew
Ethiopia 1976
Ghana 1978Did not enter
Nigeria 1980Did not qualify
Libya 1982Did not enter
Ivory Coast 1984Did not qualify
Egypt 1986
Morocco 1988
Algeria 1990
Senegal 1992
Tunisia 1994
South Africa 1996Withdrew
Burkina Faso 1998Did not qualify
Ghana Nigeria 2000
Mali 2002
Tunisia 2004Group stage16th300318
Egypt 2006Did not qualify
Ghana 2008Group stage15th300317
Angola 2010Group stage14th301225
Equatorial Guinea Gabon 2012Did not qualify
South Africa 2013
Equatorial Guinea 2015
Gabon 2017
Egypt 2019Quarter-finals8th504134
Cameroon 2021Did not qualify
Ivory Coast 2023
Morocco 2025 To be determined
Total Quarter-finals 4/33 14 0 5 9 7 24

References
  1. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 21 September 2023. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  2. Kobo, Kingsley. "Fifa back detained Benin FA boss Anjorin Moucharaf". Goal. Archived from the original on 2021-11-09. Retrieved 2021-11-09.
  3. "Benin löst Nationalelf auf". Archived from the original on 2011-06-04. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
  4. "Bénin: Les Ecureuils et Michel DUSSUYER sanctionnés" (in French). Fédération Béninoise de Football. Archived from the original on 11 February 2010. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  5. "Benin coach Michel Dussuyer 'unaware' of sacking". BBC Sport. 9 February 2010. Archived from the original on 23 January 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  6. "𝗜𝗹𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲́𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘂𝗿𝘀!". Twitter. Bénin Football.
  7. Mamrud, Roberto. "Benin – Record International Players". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 7 July 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
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