The Total Young Players African Cups

The Total U-17 Africa Cup of Nations is a biannual football tournament first hosted by Mali in 1995 that serves as a qualifying tournament for the FIFA U-17 World Cup. Known from 1995-2015 as the African U-17 Championship, the Total U-17 Africa Cup of Nations features the continent’s most promising young football stars under the age of 17, playing on an international stage. The 2019 event will take place in Tanzania without defending champions Mali, who failed to qualify for the tournament. Mali, Gambia, Ghana and Nigeria have had the most success, each scoring two titles.

In the 20-and-under age group, the Total U-20 Africa Cup of Nations is another biennial event that has taken place since 1979 (from 1979-2001 the tournament utilized a 21-and-under age rule). Like the U-17 competition, the Total U-20 Africa Cup of Nations acts as a qualifying tournament for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. In early 2019, Niger hosted the 15^th edition of the tournament, with Mali taking home its first title. Nigeria is the most decorated team in the tournament’s history, possessing seven championship titles, followed by Egypt with four, and Ghana with three.

Since 2011, the Total Africa U-23 Cup of Nations has functioned as a qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games, featuring eight teams of the best under-23-year-old football players from across the continent. Gabon won the inaugural tournament in 2011—which was hosted by Morocco—and Nigeria won the tournament in 2015, which took place in Senegal. The 2019 edition of the event will take place later this year in Egypt.

Key figures for the Total young players cups