The Central African Republic national football team (French: Équipe de République centrafricaine de football), nicknamed Les Fauves, is the national team of the Central African Republic and is controlled by the Central African Football Federation. They are a member of CAF. Despite being traditionally one of the weakest teams in Africa and the world, they have had some success. They won the 2009 CEMAC Cup by beating Gabon in the semi-finals and Equatorial Guinea in the final 3–0. Their FIFA ranking rose from 202nd in August 2010 to 89th by July 2011. On 10 October 2010, they earned a shock 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier win at home against Algeria 2–0, which put them top of their qualification group. The team won its first FIFA World Cup qualifier on 2 June 2012 after beating Botswana 2–0 at home.
History Early years (1956–1989)
The team made its debut under the name of Ubangi-Shari in 1956 against French Cameroon. The Central African Football Federation was founded in 1961 and joined FIFA in 1964 and CAF in 1965.
Their first competitive match was in the 1961 Friendship Games in Ivory Coast where Central African Republic drew twice against Upper Volta and Liberia before losing to the hosts and failing to progress to the next round.
Central African Republic entered the 1974 African Cup of Nations qualification for the first time, progressing due to Gabon's withdrawal but were then eliminated 5–4 on aggregate by Ivory Coast, a tie which saw the second leg abandoned at half-time after arguments between players of both sides, forcing a replay in Lagos which Ivory Coast won 5–1.
They took part in 1984 UDEAC Cup where they qualified to the knock-out rounds on goal-difference over Equatorial Guinea but were then heavily beaten by Cameroon 7–1 before beating Gabon on penalties to finish third. However, in the 1988 UDEAC Cup, Gabon would get their revenge, beating Central African Republic in the semi-finals. The following year Central African Republic would host the 1989 UDEAC Cup, making it to the finals, beating Gabon on the way, before losing 2–1 to Cameroon.
Sporadic matches (1990–2008) During the 1990s, Central African Republic played very few international games, withdrawing from the 1996 African Cup of Nations qualification without playing a match. They returned to competition in the UNIFAC Cup in 1999, winning three times and losing twice to finish second.
Central African Republic participated in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers for the first time, losing in the first round to Zimbabwe. They reached the final of the inaugural CEMAC Cup, losing to an amateur Cameroon team that they'd drawn with a week earlier in the tournament.
Promising victories (2009–2019) In 2009, Central African Republic hosted the 2009 CEMAC Cup where they defeated Equatorial Guinea 3–0 in the final, with goals from Salif Kéïta and a brace from Hilaire Momi to claim their first trophy.
During the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, Central African Republic achieved a historic 2–0 home victory over the top seeded Algeria, a team that had recently competed at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In July 2011, they climbed to 89th place in the FIFA world rankings, having occupied 202nd place as recently as August 2010.
On 2 June 2012, they obtained their first victory in World Cup qualification, beating Botswana 2–0 at home. Despite that positive result, Central African Republic finished bottom of their group. On 15 June 2012, despite being reduced to ten men, they achieved another impressive victory, beating Egypt 3–2 in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, inflicting the first home defeat on the Egyptians in AFCON qualifiers since 1965. Thanks to a 1–1 draw at home in the second leg, Central African Republic eliminated the Egyptians, but in the second round they were defeated by Burkina Faso.
Missed opportunities (2020–present)
On 30 March 2021, in the last group stage match of the Africa Cup of Nations qualification, Central African Republic lost 1–0 at home against Mauritania to finish bottom of their group; hence, they missed the opportunity, had they won, to finish second which would have qualified them for the final tournament for the first time in their history.
On 17 June 2023, Central African Republic needed a win at home against Angola on matchday 5 of the qualifications to secure their first ever participation in the Africa Cup of Nations; however, the match ended in a 2–1 defeat and a drop to third place. In the final group stage match, the national team lost 2–1 to Ghana, despite a 1–0 lead, which ended their last hope of qualification.
FIFA Series tournament In 2024, Central African Republic played their first ever tournament outside Africa where FIFA invited them to the 2024 FIFA Series matches on from 22 to 25 March 2024 held in Colombo in Sri Lanka where they would face Bhutan and Papua New Guinea.
Results and fixtures The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
2025
2026
2027
Coaching history Caretaker managers are listed in italics.
Evgeni Rogov (1973–1976) Étienne Momokoamas (2004–2006) Francois Yanguere (2006–2008) Jules Accorsi (2010–2012) Herve Lougoundji (2012–2014) Raoul Savoy (2014–2015) Blaise Kopogo (2015) Herve Lougoundji (2015–2017) Raoul Savoy (2017–2019) François Zahoui (2019–2021) Raoul Savoy (2021–2024) Eloge Enza Yamissi (2024–2025) Rigobert Song (2025) Eloge Enza Yamissi (2025–)
Players Current squad The following players were selected for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualification matches in September and October 2026.
Caps and goals as of 30 September 2026, after the match against Burkina Faso.
Recent call-ups The following players have also been called up to the Central African Republic squad within the last twelve months.
INJ Withdrew due to injury PRE Preliminary squad RET Retired from the national team SUS Serving suspension WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.
Records
Players in bold are still active with Central African Republic.
Most appearances
RankPlayerCapsGoalsCareer 1 Foxi Kéthévoama 49 8 2002–2021 2 Geoffrey Lembet 42 0 2010–present 3 Flory Yangao 39 0 2021–present 4 Franklin Anzité 37 0 2010–20195 Sadock Ndobé 36 0 2017–present Nicaise Zimbori-Auzingoni 36 2 2011–20187 Louis Mafouta 33 16 2017–present Hilaire Momi 33 10 2007–2018 Saint-Cyr Ngam Ngam 33 0 2015–2022 Trésor Toropité 33 6 2013–present
Top goalscorers
RankPlayerGoalsCapsRatioCareer 1 Louis Mafouta 16 33 2017–present 2 Hilaire Momi 15 33 2007–2018 3 Foxi Kéthévoama 8 49 2002–2021 4 Tresór Toropité 6 33 2014–present5 Karl Namnganda 5 28 2021–present Vianney Mabidé 5 30 2010–20207 Moussa Limane 4 13 2013–2017 Vénuste Baboula 4 20 2023–present Junior Gourrier 4 27 2007–202110 Tieri Godame 3 6 2024–present Isaac Ngoma 3 18 2021–present Geoffrey Kondogbia 3 22 2018–present Salif Kéïta 3 31 2007–2021
Competitive record
FIFA World Cup FIFA World Cup recordFIFA World Cup qualification recordYearRoundPosition** 1930Not a FIFA memberNot a FIFA member 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966Did not enterDid not enter 1970 1974 1978WithdrewWithdrew 1982Disqualified during qualifyingDisqualified during qualifying 1986Did not enterDid not enter 1990 1994 1998Did not qualify200214 2006WithdrewWithdrew 2010 2014Did not qualify6105512 2018201125 2022611449 2026102261124 2030 To be determinedTo be determined 2034 Total–––––––2644182354
Africa Cup of Nations Africa Cup of Nations recordAfrica Cup of Nations qualification recordYearRoundPosition** 1957Part of FrancePart of France 1959 1962Not affiliated to CAFNot affiliated to CAF 1963 1965 1968 1970Did not enterDid not enter 1972 1974Did not qualify210156 1976WithdrewWithdrew 1978Did not enterDid not enter 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988Did not qualify200227 1990Did not enterDid not enter 1992 1994 1996WithdrewWithdrew 1998DisqualifiedDisqualified 2000Did not enterDid not enter 2002Did not qualify201113 2004602439 2006WithdrewWithdrew 2008Did not enterDid not enter 2010WithdrewWithdrew 2012Did not qualify622255 2013421166 2015201113 20176312911 2019613248 20216114511 2023621397 20256105314 2027To be determinedTo be determined 2029Total–––––––541313285390
African Nations Championship African Nations Championship recordAfrican Nations Championship qualification recordYearRoundPosition** 2009Did not enterDid not enter 2011 2014WithdrewWithdrew 2016 2018DisqualifiedDisqualified 2020Did not qualify200216 2022210122 2024Group stage18th401327210122TotalGroup stage4013276204510
Head-to-head record As of 28 September 2026 after match against Burkina Faso
OpponentPldWDLGFGAGD 3 1 0 2 2 5 −3 5 1 0 4 5 11 −6 1 1 0 0 6 0 +6 2 1 0 1 4 3 +1 7 1 1 5 6 14 −8 2 1 1 0 4 2 +2 9 2 1 6 14 26 −12 2 0 1 1 2 3 −1 10 6 1 3 16 12 +4 2 0 0 2 2 6 −4 14 1 1 12 12 33 −21 9 1 1 7 8 30 −22 4 0 2 2 6 11 −5 2 1 1 0 4 3 +1 2 0 0 2 1 4 −3 15 3 4 8 13 23 −10 2 0 1 1 2 3 −1 4 0 1 3 5 12 –7 4 0 2 2 3 5 −2 2 0 1 1 1 3 −2 5 1 1 3 5 19 −14 1 1 0 0 3 2 +1 2 1 0 1 3 2 +1 3 0 1 2 2 5 −3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 10 4 2 4 15 16 –1 4 0 2 2 5 8 −3 1 0 0 1 1 2 −1 5 0 0 5 2 9 −7 7 0 2 5 1 19 −18 2 0 1 1 1 2 −2 2 1 1 0 2 0 +2 2 1 0 1 1 2 −1 1 1 0 0 4 0 +4 4 1 1 2 4 10 −6 3 3 0 0 8 1 +7 1 0 0 1 0 3 −3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 0 5 −5 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 4 1 1 2 4 6 −2 2 0 1 1 1 2 −1 1 0 0 1 0 3 −3 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1 2 0 0 2 1 4 −3 Total 166 36 35 97 179 321 −142
FIFA ranking history End of each year only
Honours Regional CEMAC Cup Champions (1): 2009 Runners-up (1): 2003 UNIFAC Cup Runners-up (1): 1999
Friendly FIFA Series (1): 2024 Sri Lanka
Notes
References
External links
Facebook CFA Football Association Official profile Central African Republic at CAF Central African Republic at FIFA