The Elephants of Ivory Coast and Nigeria's Super Eagles are one of the powerhouses of African Football and will be seen as one of the contenders for the Africa Cup of Nations title in January.
Ivory Coast are hosts and will be looking to win on home soil since their win back in 2015. The Elephants first won the African showpiece in 1992 but have been quite close in the last 20 years after two final defeats in 2006 and 2012.
The triumph in 1992 was staged in Senegal with Ivory Coast beating Ghana in the final; going all the way with the likes of goalkeeper Alain Gouamene, Abdoulaye Traore, Joel Tiehi etc. It was their first win on the continent. The success in 2015 featured the likes of Kolo Toure, Yaya Toure, Wilfried Bony etc.
As for the Super Eagles of Nigeria, they have been champions of Africa three times with the most recent one coming in South Africa back in 2013 under the late Stephen Keshi. Enroute that win, Super Eagles defeated Ivory Coast in the final eight and both sides will clash again in the West African nation.
Ivory Coast and Super Eagles to clash at AFCON 2023
The draws for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) placed the hosts and Nigeria in Group A and both will meet on match day two in what could be an explosive encounter.
Super Eagles will play two friendly games in January before AFCON.
Nigeria vs Cape Verde.
Nigeria vs Burkina Faso.20 Days To AFCON ✌️.
Jose Peseiro is about to COOK 🔥. Get ready to eat. pic.twitter.com/JnRQmHcbr2
— Adepoju Tobi Samuel 🇳🇬 (@OgaNlaMedia) December 24, 2023
It is the second time Ivory Coast will be hosting the continent since the 1984 edition and they will be keen to get a win on home soil with the number of stars they have in their squad.
Ahead of the start of that big tournament, here is a look at what the two teams have achieved or done at the AFCON in terms of wins since their debut.
Ivory Coast and Super Eagles – number of AFCON wins
Ivory Coast made their first AFCON appearance in 1965 in Tunisia, while the Super Eagles made their debut an edition earlier.
The 2023 edition is the 34th time the AFCON will be staged. Ivory Coast have made 24 appearances, while Nigeria's Super Eagles have only appeared 19 times at the continental showpiece.
In terms of games played, Ivory Coast have played 99 games at the AFCON, while the Super Eagles have played just two fewer.
Despite the slight difference in the number of games played, the Super Eagles have won more games compared to the Elephants of Ivory Coast. Super Eagles have won 53 games, while Ivory Coast have 44 wins to their name.
Ivory Coast have also suffered more defeats (25) at the AFCON compared to the Super Eagles (22). Also, the Super Eagles have drawn 22 games while Ivory Coast have drawn 30 games.
Meanwhile, the Super Eagles and Ivory Coast have met three times at the AFCON with two wins going to the Elephants and one win to Nigeria.
On the medal table, Super Eagles have three title wins, four second place finishes and a record eighth-time bronze wins. As for Ivory Coast, two title wins, two second place finishes and four bronze wins.
This article was most recently revised and updated 9 months ago
