Equatorial Guinea national football team (original) (raw)

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Men's association football team

Equatorial Guinea

Nickname(s)	Nzalang Nacional (National Thunder)
Association	Federación Ecuatoguineana de Fútbol
Confederation	CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation	UNIFFAC (Central Africa)
Head coach	Juan Michá
Captain	Carlos Akapo
Most caps	Federico Bikoro (55)
Top scorer	Emilio Nsue (22)
Home stadium	Estadio de Malabo
FIFA code	EQG
First colours Second colours Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current	93 (19 December 2024)[1]
Highest	49 (February 2015)
Lowest	195 (December 1998)
First international
China 6–2 Equatorial Guinea (China, 23 May 1975)
Biggest win
Equatorial Guinea 4–0 Central African Republic (Bata, Equatorial Guinea; 1 December 2014) Equatorial Guinea 4–0 South Sudan (Malabo, Equatorial Guinea; 4 September 2016) Equatorial Guinea 4–0 Ivory Coast (Abidjan, Ivory Coast; 22 January 2024)
Biggest defeat
Congo 6–0 Equatorial Guinea (Congo, 13 December 1990)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances	4 (first in 2012)
Best result	Fourth place (2015)
African Nations Championship
Appearances	1 (first in 2018)
Best result	Group stage (2018)
COSAFA Cup
Appearances	0
Best result	Withdrew (2015)

The Equatorial Guinea national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Guinea Ecuatorial) represents Equatorial Guinea in men's international football and is controlled by the Equatoguinean Football Federation, a member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

The team has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup, but has qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations on four occasions, the first two times as hosts (in 2012 and 2015). They finished in fourth place in 2015, and reached the quarter-finals in 2012 and 2021.

Equatorial Guinea played its first match on 23 May 1975 against China in a friendly, losing 6–2. They did not play another game until the 1985 UDEAC Cup in December 1985. They were drawn in a group against the hosts Congo and Central African Republic. They lost 5–0 to the Congo on 9 December and then earned their first draw by drawing 1–1 against the Central African Republic on 14 December. On 16 December, they played a play-off for fifth place against Chad, and lost 3–2 on penalties after a 1–1 draw.

Equatorial Guinea would come in fourth in the 1987 UDEAC Cup, losing on penalties in the third place match to Gabon, even though they only scored one goal throughout the tournament in a 1–1 draw against Chad. They also drew 0–0 against Cameroon. On their next attempt, they got sixth place after losing on penalties against the Central African Republic. The next time Equatorial Guinea played the Central African Republic, in 1999, they won, 4–2. It was Equatorial Guinea's first win.

In the late 2000s, the FEGUIFUT, along with the Gabonese Federation, announced a bid to host the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, against other African nations' bids, including Angola, Libya and Nigeria. Equatorial Guinea and Gabon won the right to host the games,[4] and two new stadiums were built in Equatorial Guinea: Estadio de Bata in Bata and Estadio de Malabo in Malabo.[5]

The first game in the 2012 African Cup of Nations was also Equatorial Guinea's first participation in a major international tournament, and resulted in a historic 1–0 win over Libya on 21 January 2012 in the opening game of the tournament. An 87th-minute strike from former Real Madrid winger Javier Balboa earned the victory.[6] In the next game, they secured the qualification for the quarter-finals by beating Senegal 2–1,[7] and finished second in their group after losing 0–1 to Zambia.[8] They progressed to the quarter-finals where they were eliminated by the tournament's runners-up Ivory Coast, losing 3–0 with goals from Didier Drogba and Yaya Touré.[9] Various national side players were praised due to their performances in the tournament, including Javier Balboa, Randy, Ben Konaté and Rui, the latter a part of the Team of the Tournament.[10]

Three years after that Africa Cup of Nations, Equatorial Guinea organized solely the 2015 edition, but this time, to replace Morocco, the original host. In the opener, they drew 1–1 against Congo, with Emilio Nsue scoring first. In the second game, they managed to play out a 0–0 draw with Burkina Faso, the runners-up of the previous edition. With these two results, the Nzalang Nacional had to win against its classic rival Gabon in the third match in order to qualify for the quarter-finals. Equatorial Guinea won 2–0 with goals from Javier Balboa (a penalty kick) and Ibán. As Group A's runner-up, the Equatoguinean national team then defeated Tunisia 2–1 with two goals from Balboa, the first being a penalty kick in the final moments of the regular time, and the second was in extra time. In the semi-final, however, they lost 0–3 to Ghana, and in the match for third place, drew 0–0 against DR Congo, ultimately losing 2–4 on penalties. The country finished the tournament in fourth place, being its best international participation to date and helping it reach a historical 49th position in the FIFA rankings.

2021 Africa Cup of Nations

[edit]

Equatorial Guinea failed to qualify for 2017 and 2019 editions of the African Cup of Nations. Likewise, the team had also didn't qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. During the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification, they were grouped in group J along with powerhouse Tunisia, 2019 AFCON participant Tanzania and North African bedfellow Libya. The Nzalang Nacional performed poorly in their first two games, losing both with one goal margin to Tanzania away and Tunisia at home, and it appeared that Equatorial Guinea would just end up failing as usual as the team had never qualified throughout regular qualification outside hosting the competition twice.[11][12]

However, the COVID-19 pandemic led all AFCON qualification suspended until late 2020, when it resumed as Equatorial Guinea faced up against a rising spirit Libyan side that aimed to qualify for the first time since 2012. Despite this, Equatorial Guinea produced an outstanding comeback against Libya in Egypt, beating Libya 3–2 with two late goals by Pedro Obiang and Salomón Obama from being led 1–2 until injury times.[13] The Nzalang Nacional later hosted the same opponent at home, and like their game in Cairo, the Equatorial Guineans won again, 1–0, by virtual goal from Iban Salvador.[14] After beating Tanzania 1–0 on home soil, Equatorial Guinea managed a historic feat, a regular qualification for the first time ever in its history.[_citation needed_]

During AFCON 2021, the National Thunder were drawn in group E, alongside Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Algeria. Equatorial Guinea lost their opening match against Ivory Coast, but produced one of the tournament's surprised when they defeated trophy holders Algeria in their second match.[15] In their final match of the group, they defeated Sierra Leone and qualified for the round of 16, coming in second in the group, after Ivory Coast.[16]

In the round of 16, Equatorial Guinea was drawn against Mali, the winners of group F. The game ended in a goalless draw after 120 minutes and went to deciding penalties, where the Nzalang Nacional won the shoot-out 6–5 thanks to the heroics of goalkeeper Jesús Owono, who saved two of the shots. This meant that the national team qualified for the quarter finals of AFCON for the third time in their history and the first one advancing from the round of 16. They subsequently lost to eventual champions Senegal, 3-1.[17]

Naturalised players controversy

[edit]

In recent years, Equatorial Guinea has courted controversy by recruiting foreign players and giving them citizenship despite having little or no ties to the country. In 2009, South African journalist and FIFA archivist Mark Gleeson wrote that it was undermining the integrity of African football.[18]

In late 2005, and at the request of Ruslán Obiang Nsue, a son of President Teodoro Obiang, Brazilian coach Antônio Dumas recruited several Brazilian players to represent the Equatorial Guinea but the CAF and FIFA turned a blind eye, despite complaints from other nations.

In 2012, having lost the first leg of a 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification round 4–0 to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea recruited nine Brazilian players to help overturn the deficit for the second leg. The team did manage to win the match 2–1, but it was not enough to overturn the aggregate and Equatorial Guinea were eliminated. DR Congo head coach Claude Le Roy complained that the Equatorial Guinea were acting like the "United Nations of football"[_citation needed_].

Before the arrival of new coach Andoni Goikoetxea to Malabo, in March 2013, the Equatoguinean board made the squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Cape Verde and again called-up nine Brazilian players.[19] In May 2013, they joined Colombian-born, Equatorian-based Jimmy Bermúdez, who was going to be paid €3,000 for each match he played.[20]

During the 2015 qualifiers, in the games played against Mauritania, the Nzalang Nacional lost 1–0 away and won 3–0 in Malabo, qualifying to the next round to face Uganda. However, the Mauritanian Football Federation submitted a complaint to CAF about the inclusion of ineligible players by Equatorial Guinea (some with fake passports and false names), resulting in the expulsion of the Equatorial Guinean team, based on the particular situation of Thierry Fidjeu, while the cases of the other players remained under investigation.

Emilio Nsue, who had played for Spanish youth national teams from 2005 to 2011, played two matches of Equatorial Guinea in 2013. A few months later, FIFA declared him ineligible for that match and for the return fixture, awarding both games to Cape Verde by a 3–0 scoreline.[21] Nsue did not gain Equatoguinean nationality until after playing official matches for Spain and the Equatoguinean Football Federation did not ask FIFA for permission to switch allegiances.[22] Nsue continued to play for Equatorial Guinea despite FIFA declaring his ineligibility, including the 2015, 2021, and 2023 editions of the African Cup of Nations.[22] In June 2024, FIFA judges ruled that Nsue was never eligible to play for Equatorial Guinea throughout his entire career.[22]

Estadio de Malabo

Equatorial Guinea's home stadium is Estadio de Malabo in the same name city. It can hold up to 15,250 people. Equatorial Guinea played there when they hosted the Afcon 2012 and they played against eventual winners Zambia and runners-up, the Ivory Coast. They also played in the newly constructed Estadio de Bata, where they won both their games against Libya and Senegal.[5]

Equatorial Guinea wears a red and white uniform. The kit manufacturer is Erreà. When they play in Equatorial Guinea, they wear a solid red jersey and matching shorts with white stripes. The number, FEGUIFUT logo, and Erreà logo are located on the chest. The socks are red with white at the top.[23] When Equatorial Guinea is away, they wear all white shirt with blue stripes.

The rivalry with Tunisia is unique over the fact that these meetings are more recent and used to be regarded as unimportant, but the root fuelling this rivalry occurred during the quarter-finals of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, in which the Tunisians got a string of unfair decisions from the referee, which caused the team to lose to the Equatorial Guinean hosts 2–1, fuelled widespread rage and anger among Tunisian players and fans.[24] Ever since, Tunisia and Equatorial Guinea have found themselves surprisingly in confrontation of numerous recent tournament qualifications, started with the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification where Tunisia won both fixtures, albeit by one goal margin. However, despite Tunisia's domination, Equatorial Guinea have proven to be increasingly stern in later qualifications, having managed to defeat Tunisia at home in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification and the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification.[25][26] Both national teams are again scheduled to face each other at the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification.[27]

Equatorial Guinea classic rival is its neighbor Gabon.[28] Disputed territories are a main cause in this rivalry.[29] Their first recognized match was on 18 December 1987 and it ended in a 4-3 win for Gabon via penalty shoot-out after a goalless draw. After five loses over the next 15 years, Equatorial Guinea would earn its first win on 8 June 2003, a 2-1 at home, during the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations qualification.[30] This result is among the most celebrated Equatorial Guinea matches ever by local fans.[31] They also had a notable 2-0 victory over Gabon at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, which allowed them to pass the group stage, eliminating Gabon in the process.

Results and fixtures

[edit]

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

Position	Name
Head coach	Juan Michá Obiang Bicogo
Assistant coach	Casto Nopo
Goalkeeping coach	Benjamín Olo Mbang Esono
Doctors	Galo Ela Owono Ndong
Fernando Oyono Mba Nsue
Physiotherapists	Carlos Obiang Esono Nzang
Boyebote Masa Nsue Efua
Jesús Ndong Nchama Ekeng
Delegate	Daniel Ebendeng Oyono Mbang
Physical trainers	José Víctor Nchama Asumu Nguema
Utility man	Levi Ela Ayong Nsue
Assistant utility man	José Marcos Mituy Owono Nzang
Nutritionist	Úrsula Esono Mbela Ndong
Security representative	Juan Ricardo Ela Ndong Mve

Caretaker managers are listed in italics.

Coaches of local-based national team

[edit]

The following players were called up for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification matches against Algeria and Togo on 14 and 17 November 2024, respectively.[32]

Caps and goals updated as of 17 November 2024 after the match against Togo.

The following players have been called up in the last 12 months and are still eligible to represent.

As of 10 June 2024[33]

Players in bold are still active with Equatorial Guinea.

Federico Bikoro is Equatorial Guinea's most capped player with 59 appearances.

Emilio Nsue is Equatorial Guinea's top scorer with 22 goals.

Competition records

[edit]

FIFA World Cup record		Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930 to 1966	Part of Spain	Part of Spain
1970 to 1986	Not a FIFA member	Not a FIFA member
1990 to 1998	Did not enter	Did not enter
2002	Did not qualify	2	0	0	2	2	5
2006	2	1	0	1	1	2
2010	6	1	0	5	4	10
2014	8	1	2	5	9	17
2018	2	1	0	1	1	2
2022	8	4	3	1	8	6
2026	To be determined	4	1	0	3	1	7
2030	To be determined
2034
Total	–	0/9	–	–	–	–	–	–	32	9	5	18	26	49

Africa Cup of Nations

[edit]

Africa Cup of Nations record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1957 to 1968	Part of Spain
1970 to 1986	Not affiliated to CAF
1988	Withdrew
1990	Did not qualify
1992 to 1994	Did not enter
1996	Withdrew
1998 to 2000	Did not enter
2002 to 2010	Did not qualify
2012	Quarter-finals	7th	4	2	0	2	3	5
2013	Did not qualify
2015	Fourth place	4th	6	2	3	1	5	5
2017	Did not qualify
2019
2021	Quarter-finals	7th	5	2	1	2	3	4
2023	Round of 16	10th	4	2	1	1	9	4
2025	Qualified
2027	To be determined
2029
Total	Fourth place	4/34	19	8	5	6	20	18

African Nations Championship

[edit]

African Nations Championship record
Appearances: 1
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
2009	Did not enter
2011
2014	Did not qualify
2016
2018	Group stage	15th	3	0	0	3	1	7
2020	Did not qualify
2022
Total	Group stage	1/7	3	0	0	3	1	7

• CEMAC Cup
  • Winners (1): 2006
  • Runners-up (1): 2009

1. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 19 December 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
2. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 25 December 2024. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
3. ^ "Angola to host 2010 Nations Cup". bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 4 September 2006. Archived from the original on 12 December 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2006.
4. ^ a b "Nuevo Estadio de Malabo". stadiumguide.com. The Stadium Guide. Archived from the original on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
5. ^ "Balboa dá vitória à Guiné Equatorial" [Balboa gives the victory to Equatorial Guinea]. abola.pt. A Bola. 21 January 2012. Archived from the original on 23 January 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
6. ^ "Africa Cup of Nations: Equatorial Guinea in quarters as Senegal crash out". bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 25 January 2012. Archived from the original on 17 February 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
7. ^ "Africa Cup of Nations: Zambia book quarter-final slot". bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 29 January 2012. Archived from the original on 2 February 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
8. ^ "Ivory Coast 3−0 Equatorial Guinea". espn.com. ESPN. 4 February 2012. Archived from the original on 26 February 2018. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
9. ^ "Orange CAN 2012 Best XI". cafonline.com. Confédération Africaine de Football. 12 February 2012. Archived from the original on 7 December 2018. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
10. ^ "Afcon 2021 Qualifiers: Tanzania didn't collapse against Equatorial Guinea - Ndayiragije | Goal.com". Archived from the original on 4 March 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
11. ^ "Cara y cruz para Alavedra y Ganet". 19 November 2019. Archived from the original on 29 November 2020. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
12. ^ "Equatorial Guinea leaves it late to beat Libya in Cairo | CAFOnline.com". Archived from the original on 13 November 2020.
13. ^ "Libya loses 1-0 to Equatorial Guinea | The Libya Observer". Archived from the original on 17 November 2020. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
14. ^ Stevens, Rob (16 January 2022). "Equatorial Guinea stun holders Algeria". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 25 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
15. ^ Stevens, Rob (20 January 2022). "Equatoguineans through as Sierra Leone out". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 21 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
16. ^ "Equatorial Guinea shock Mali on penalties". BBC Sport. 26 January 2022. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
17. ^ "African football's integrity is undermined, by Mark Gleeson". WorldSoccer.com. 9 March 2009. Retrieved 2 January 2013.[_permanent dead link_‍]
18. ^ "Volante Neto é convocado pela Seleção de Guiné Equatorial" [Midfielder Neto is called for the national team of Equatorial Guinea] (in Portuguese). Barretos Esporte Clube. 10 March 2013. Archived from the original on 16 January 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
19. ^ "Bermúdez es convocado a la Selección de Guinea Ecuatorial : Diario Centinela" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 16 January 2014. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
20. ^ "Equatorial Guinea sanctioned for fielding ineligible player". FIFA. 19 July 2013. Archived from the original on 9 July 2014. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
21. ^ a b c Dunbar, Graham (3 June 2024). "FIFA ruling shows AFCON star Emilio Nsue was ineligible for entire career with Equatorial Guinea". Associated Press. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
22. ^ "Equatorial Guinea ANC Puma Home Shirt 2012". Football Shirts. 22 January 2012. Archived from the original on 31 July 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
23. ^ "Equatorial Guinea reach semi-finals after late penalty enrages Tunisia". The Guardian. 31 January 2015. Archived from the original on 26 December 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
24. ^ "E.Guinea stun Tunisia, Nigeria's race with Cape Verde gets down to wire - Africa - Sports - Ahram Online". Archived from the original on 30 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
25. ^ "Equatorial-guinea-stun-tunisia-to-clinch-totalenergies-afcon-ticket-morocco-defe". Archived from the original on 26 December 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
26. ^ "Tunisia national football team: Record v Equatorial Guinea". Archived from the original on 26 December 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
27. ^ Iván Zarandona (27 January 2015). "¡Esto es un sueño!". Cadena SER (in European Spanish). Archived from the original on 15 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024. The victory has an added meaning, beyond the qualification because we gave great joy to our people. For them, beating Gabon is as if we had already won the Africa Cup of Nations. It is a very strong rivalry and it was noticeable in the atmosphere before and, of course, after the match. Many children have been able to take pride in their country, after enduring with the mockery of other Gabonese kids for a long time.
28. ^ "Alberto Edjogo: "El fútbol une a gente muy diversa. Es la única institución africana que lo hace"" (in European Spanish). 9 November 2019. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2024. After playing against Morocco, I played a tie with Gabon. And in the weeks before the match, people explained to me the history of Equatorial Guinea relations with Gabon. They told me that they are two neighboring countries, and that there are disputed territories, a controversy aggravated by the suspicion that there is oil there. They accused Gabon of illegally occupying Equatoguinean territory. And we had to play against them in a qualifier for the Olympic Games. By going to play, you were almost doing a state mission. Equatoguineans had gone to Gabon, for many years, to do the worst and lowest paid jobs. And winning a match on their field was vindicating the role of the Equatoguineans. It was quite a challenge...
29. ^ "Encounters between Equatorial Guinea and Gabon". National Football Teams. Archived from the original on 15 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
30. ^ "Los componentes de 2005 de los jugadores del combinado nacional, el Nzalang Nacional. Están los seleccionados y los preseleccionados". Archived from the original on 6 February 2024. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
31. ^ @SportssEge (8 November 2024). "📋 OFICIAL: ¡Convocatoria de Guinea Ecuatorial para los últimos partidos de la fase clasificatoria de la Copa África 2025!Nzalang Nacional 🇬🇶 se enfrentará a Argelia 🇩🇿 el día 14/11 en Malabo y el 17/11 se verá las caras con Togo 🇹🇬 en Lomé#AfricanFootball #AFCON2025" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
32. ^ Mamrud, Roberto. "Equatorial Guinea - Record International Players". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2023.

• Equatoguinean Football Federation (in Spanish)
• Equatorial Guinea at CAF
• Equatorial Guinea at FIFA