The 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 27th Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial football championship of Africa (CAF). It was held in Angola, where it began on 10 January 2010 and concluded on 31 January.[1][2]
In the tournament, the hosts Angola were to be joined by 15 nations who advanced from the qualification process that began in October 2007 and involved 53 African national teams. The withdrawal of Togo after a terrorist attack on their bus upon arriving for the tournament reduced the number of participating nations to 15. A total of 29 games were played, instead of the scheduled 32 games. Egypt won the tournament, their seventh ACN title and an unprecedented third in a row, beating Ghana 1–0 in the final.[3]
Host selection
Bids :
Angola (selected as hosts for 2010)
Gabon / Equatorial Guinea (selected as hosts for 2012)
Libya (selected as hosts for 2013)
Nigeria (selected as reserve hosts for 2010, 2012 & 2013 tournaments)
Rejected Bids :
Benin / Central African Republic
Botswana
Mozambique
Namibia
Senegal
Zimbabwe
On 4 September 2006, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) approved a compromise between rival countries to host the Africa Cup of Nations after it ruled out Nigeria. CAF agreed to award the next three editions from 2010 to Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Libya respectively. They assigned Angola in 2010, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, which submitted a joint bid in 2012, and Libya for 2014.
This edition was awarded to Angola to encourage the country to move towards peace after the Angolan Civil War.
Two-time former host Nigeria was the reserve host for the 2010, 2012 and 2014 tournaments, in the event that any of the host countries failed to meet the requirements established by CAF, although this ended up being unnecessary.
The 2014 tournament was pushed forward to 2013 and subsequently held in odd-numbered years to avoid year-clash with the FIFA World Cup.[4]
The Confederation of African Football announced that the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification would also be the qualification for this tournament. Despite the fact Angola were the host of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, they also needed to participate in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification. South Africa suffered the same situation, being the hosts for the World Cup but still needing to compete in qualification in order to qualify for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations.[5]
Qualified teams
A map of Africa showing the qualified nations, highlighted by stage reached.
The draw for the final tournament took place on 20 November 2009 at the Talatona Convention Centre in Luanda, Angola. The 16 teams were split into four pots, with Pot 1 containing the top four seeded nations. Angola were seeded as hosts and Egypt as reigning holders. The remaining 14 teams were ranked based on their records in the three last editions of the competition. Cameroon and Ivory Coast had the two strongest records and so completed the top seeded Pot 1. The four seeded teams were placed into their groups in advance of the final draw.[citation needed]
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source:[citation needed] Notes:
^ abcThe tie-breaking criteria for teams level on points consider only the results of matches between those teams (in this case, this excludes their results against Tunisia). All three teams were level on points and goal difference, and were ranked based on goals scored: Zambia 4, Cameroon 3, Gabon 2.
The following players were selected as the best in their respective positions, based on their performances throughout the tournament. Their performances were analysed by the tournament's Technical Study Group (TSG), who picked the team.[9]
For teams eliminated in the same knockout round, the following criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the final rankings:[10]
Goal difference in round eliminated;
Goals scored in round eliminated;
If teams eliminated in the semi-finals or quarter-finals are tied, the above criteria are reapplied for the previous knockout round, with this process repeated once more should two semi-finalists remain tied;
Points in group stage;
Goal difference in group stage;
Goals scored in group stage;
Disciplinary points.
For teams eliminated in the group stage, the following criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the final rankings:[10]
Most goals scored by a winning team: 4 – Egypt (4–0 vs. Algeria)
*** indicates the team played only two matches in the group stage, due to the withdrawal of Togo from the tournament.
Mascot
Palanquinha, the mascot of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations
The Mascot for the Tournament is Palanquinha, which was inspired by the Giant Sable Antelope (Hippotragus niger variani), a national symbol and a treasured animal in Angola. In Angola, this animal is found only in the Cangandala National Park in Malange Province.
On 8 January 2010, the team bus of the Togo national football team was attacked by gunmen in Cabinda, Angola as it travelled to the tournament. A spokesman for the Togolese football federation said assistant coach Améleté Abalo and press officer Stanislaud Ocloo had died as well as the driver. The separatist group Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda-Military Position (FLEC-PM) claimed responsibility for the attack. The Togolese team withdrew from the competition the following day. The players initially decided to compete to commemorate the victims in this way, but were immediately ordered to return by the Togolese government.[11]
Following their departure from Angola, Togo were formally disqualified from the tournament after failing to fulfil their opening Group B game against Ghana on 11 January.
On 30 January 2010, CAF banned Togo from participating in the next two Africa Cup of Nations tournaments and fined the team $50,000 due to "government involvement in the withdrawal from the tournament".[12] Togo were unable to compete until the 2015 tournament, but that ban was lifted on 14 May 2010 by a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport.[13]
Notes: The 2021 and 2023 tournaments were actually held in 2022 and 2024 respectively. • There were no 1957 and 1959 qualifications as places were given by invitation only. • The "finals" articles for 1959 and 1976 are about the decisive matches of final group stages. Football in Africa portal
Egypt (7th title)
Ghana
Nigeria
Algeria
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