African Cup of Nations Top Scorers

World class players grace the AFCON top scorers list and some of the world’s best have performed miracles at the competition. This review of the top scorers in the tournament looks back at some of the greatest to feature in the elite football event.

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• Top 10 AFCON Top Scorers
• AFCON Top Scorers Predictions for 2024
• AFCON Top Scorers FAQs

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Top 10 AFCON Top Scorers

Below, you can find a complete list of the all-time leading AFCON scorers. These players often led the first goalscorer and anytime goalscorer markets in AFCON betting due to their excellent ability.

⚽ Samuel Eto’o

Former Cameroon international Samuel Eto’o scored 18 goals at the AFCON finals. As a result, he is the all-time leading scorer in the competition’s history.

The former Barcelona, Inter Milan and Chelsea striker made his debut in the AFCON in 2000. Here he broke onto the scene with four goals in the tournament, helping Cameroon lift the title.

Between 2000 and 2010, Eto’o played in six separate AFCON finals. However, his final goal at the tournament came in 2008, when he struck against Sudan in the group stages.

⚽ Laurent Pokou

Laurent Pokou scored 14 AFCON goals for Ivory Coast, making him the second-highest scorer in the competition. All of Pokou’s goals came in the 1968 competition as Ivory Coast raced to the semi-finals before losing to Ghana.

During the 1968 AFCON competition, Pokou struck five goals in one match against Ethiopia. Also, the former striker scored twice in victories over Algeria and Cameroon and in a draw with Cameroon.

⚽ Rasheed Yekini

Nigeria’s all-time national team goalscorer Rashidi Yekini is the third highest AFCON goalscorer. The retired player sits behind Pokou with 13 goals in AFCON finals.

Yekini scored just once in his first two AFCON competitions in 1984 and 1988. However, the striker found confidence and hit the net 12 times across the 1992 and 1994 editions. His goals were particularly vital in the 1994 tournament as he led Nigeria to the AFCON title.

⚽ Hassan El-Shazly

Egypt’s former player Hassan El-Shazly ended his football career with 12 AFCON goals between 1963 and 1974. El-Shazly was prolific during his maiden AFCON competition in 1963. Here, the striker netted six goals in just three games, including a hat-trick on his debut against Nigeria.

The former Egyptian star followed up his strong debut with five more goals in the 1970 AFCON. But he was less successful in 1974, with just one goal in the competition.

⚽ Didier Drogba

Didier Drogba is one of the greatest ever Ivory Coast and African players in world football history. In 105 appearances for the national team, Drogba scored 65 goals, 11 of which came in AFCON matches. In 2006, Drogba scored three goals as Ivory Coast reached the final, only to lose against Egypt on penalties.

The former Ivory Coast captain was always consistent at the AFCON. He featured in five separate competitions and scored three goals in three tournament appearances. Drogba finished his AFCON career with 11 goals in 2013.

⚽ Hossam Hassan

Another AFCON top goalscorer to score 11 goals was Egypt’s Hossam Hassan. The striker represented Egypt for over 20 years and is the nation’s leading scorer with 68 goals.

Despite playing in seven AFCONs, most of Hassan’s goals came between 1998 and 2000. In 1998, Hassan netted seven goals as Egypt went on to win the title. Again in 2000, the striker performed well with three goals in four appearances, before the Pharaohs were knocked out in the quarter finals.

⚽ Patrick M’Boma

Although Cameroon’s Patrick M’Boma eventually finished his international career with 11 goals, he had to wait for his maiden goal. The striker didn’t score for his first four AFCON games, before eventually scoring against Ivory Coast in 2000.

M’Boma went on to have a prolific 2000 campaign. He scored four goals as Cameroon lifted the AFCON title. In 2002, M’Boma scored three more AFCON goals. Then he signed off his AFCON account in style with a hat-trick against Zimbabwe in the 2004 AFCON

⚽ Kalusha Bwalya

Former Zambian captain Kalusha Bwalya was a star player in the nation’s golden era. Not only did the forward strike ten AFCON goals in his career, but he led Zambia to the 1994 tournament final.

During the 1994 competition, Bwalya only scored one goal. But his best-ever scoring return at the AFCON came in 1996 when he netted five goals as Zambia made the semi-finals before losing to Tunisia.

Francileudo Santos

Francileudo Santos is the only Tunisian player to feature in the all-time AFCON scorers list. In just 41 international appearances, the former player scored 22 goals and ten came in the AFCON finals.

In just 12 AFCON matches, Santos hit the net ten times, including one hat-trick and two braces. The forward also played a starring role in Tunisia’s 2004 AFCON title win, when he scored four goals and one in the 2-1 final victory over Morocco.

⚽ Joël Tiéhi

Ivory Coast’s former striker Joël Tiéhi also scored ten goals in his AFCON career. His first competition goals came on his debut during a 3-0 win over Algeria in 1992. However, it was Tiéhi’s only goal in that edition as Ivory Coast went on to win the competition.

Tiéhi was more dangerous in his following two AFCON finals. In 1994, he scored four goals, including a hat-trick against Sierra Leone. Then Tiéhi added another five goals to his AFCON tally in 1996 as he captained Ivory Coast to the quarter finals.

AFCON Top Scorers Predictions for 2024

However, while some of the previous elite players contribute to the AFCON leading scorers list, some current players will want to make their mark on the 2024 competition.

Here are some AFCON predictions for the 2024 leading scoring candidates:

• Mohamed Salah (Egypt)
• Sadio Mane (Senegal)
• Victor Osimhen (Nigeria)

Only time will tell what the AFCON results will be.

AFCON Top Scorers FAQs

To complete this review, you can find answers to bettors’ questions about AFCON scorers.