The Biggest Stars in the History of AFCON

Over the years, the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) has seen the best of football stars, including notable figures like George Weah. Despite being the continent’s greatest football export and the only African to win both FIFA World Player of the Year and Ballon d’Or awards, Weah did not enjoy any notable success in the men’s premier tournament.

Many players have played a crucial role in shaping AFCON’s history, with some winning the coveted trophy, and others missing out despite putting on amazing performances.

Ahead of the Côte d’Ivoire showdown taking place starting January 13, here are five players who have made a mark in the history of AFCON. Other players playing in this tournament will one day be considered history makers, but for now, the list only includes retired players.

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Roger Milla – Cameroon

When talking about the greatest African players of all time, Roger Milla must be in the discussion. He was instrumental in the Indomitable Lions’ historic journey, marking them as the first African nation to reach the World Cup’s last eight.

Honored as African Footballer of the Year in 1976 and 1990, Milla took the AFCON by storm, emerging the best player and topping the scoring charts in the 1986 and 1988 editions, winning the latter. He scored seven goals in four AFCON tournaments, enough to leave behind an impressive legacy.

Ahmed Hassan

Egypt boasts a rich AFCON heritage, being the inaugural tournament winners and achieving a unique “three-peat” with consecutive titles in 2006, 2008, and 2010.

At the heart of this extraordinary achievement was Ahmed Hassan who was named player of the tournament in both 2006 and 2010. With remarkable longevity, he not only contributed to the 1998 victory but also shares the record for the most AFCON titles with compatriot Essam El Hadary.

Hassan’s AFCON journey spanned eight tournaments, concluding with 184 international caps, ranking him fourth all-time in men’s football and making him a leading figure among African nations.

Abedi Ayew

Abedi Ayew shone brightly in a glorious era for African football. Winning the African Footballer of the Year title from 1991 to 1993, he was the top scorer at the 1992 AFCON and featured in the tournament’s team in 1992, 1994, and 1996.

Despite Ghana falling short in those AFCON instances, finishing as runners-up in 1992, Ayew had tasted AFCON success a decade earlier as a 17-year-old, contributing off the bench in the penalty shootout triumph over Libya in the 1982 final.

Key for Marseille in their 1993 Champions League victory, Ayew earned the nickname “Pele” early in his career. Two of his sons – Andre, and Jordan – will be representing Ghana in this year’s tournament.

Jay Jay Okocha

Jay-Jay Okocha, an English Premier League icon and an all-time African great, went beyond being a player known for his bag of tricks, with his legendary rainbow flicks at Bolton becoming football folklore.

Highly talented, Okocha led Nigeria for over a decade, evident in his seven Nigerian Footballer of the Year awards from 1995 to 2005. He played a pivotal role in the team of the tournament when Nigeria secured AFCON victory in 1994. While the trophy eluded him in the rest of his career, he achieved the joint top scorer and best player titles in 2004, guiding Nigeria to a third-place finish.

Samuel Eto’o

Samuel Eto’o is another Cameroonian legend, who played a crucial role in Cameroon’s dominant era. The Indomitable Lions secured back-to-back AFCON titles in 2000 and 2002, making them only the second nation after Egypt to do so.

In 2000, Eto’o scored four goals, including the opening goal in the final victory over Nigeria.

The former Barcelona and Inter striker earned the title of the top AFCON goalscorer of all time, amassing 18 goals across six tournaments.