Most appearances at the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations

The record for the greatest number of appearances at the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations finals is shared by Andre Ayew of Ghana and Rigobert Song from Cameroon with 36 each.

Both competed at eight finals tournaments, with Song appearing successively from the 1996 edition in South Africa to the 2010 tournament in Angola.

Ayew’s first tournament was in 2008 in Ghana and he has played in all since, except the 2013 finals in South Africa.

Here is a closer look at their achievements.

RIGOBERT SONG
Song won the tournament twice in 2000 and 2002 and was a runner-up in 2008. In the 2000 final in Lagos, it was Song who converted the winning kick in the post-match penalty shootout.

He played 35 successive matches at the finals in the starting line-up while his 36th game was a substitute appearance against Tunisia in the last group game of the 2010 edition in Lubango, Angola.

Song’s matches:
1996
South Africa 3 Cameroon 0
Cameroon 2 Egypt 1
Angola 3 Cameroon 3

1998
Burkina Faso 0 Cameroon 1
Cameroon 2 Guinea 2
Algeria 1 Cameroon 2
Cameroon 0 DR Congo 1

2000
Ghana 1 Cameroon 1
Cameroon 3 Cote d’Ivoire 0
Cameroon 0 Togo 1
Algeria 1 Cameroon 2
Cameroon 3 Tunisia 0
Nigeria 2 Cameroon 2

2002
Cameroon 1 DR Congo 0
Cameroon 1 Cote d’Ivoire 0
Cameroon 3 Togo 0
Cameroon 1 Egypt 0
Mali 0 Cameroon 3
Cameroon 0 Senegal 0

2004
Algeria 1 Cameroon 1
Cameroon 5 Zimbabwe 3
Cameroon 0 Egypt 0
Cameroon 1 Nigeria 2

2006
Angola 1 Cameroon 3
Cameroon 2 Togo 0
Cameroon 2 DR Congo 0
Cameroon 1 Cote d’Ivoire 1

2008
Cameroon 2 Egypt 4
Cameroon 5 Zambia 1
Cameroon 3 Sudan 0
Cameroon 3 Tunisia 2
Ghana 0 Cameroon 1
Cameroon 0 Egypt 1

2010
Cameroon 0 Gabon 1
Cameroon 3 Zambia 2
Cameroon 2 Tunisia 2

ANDRE AYEW
Ayew was a teenager when selected for the 2008 finals which Ghana hosted and he came on as a substitute in all three group games before starting for the first time in the semi-final loss to Song’s Cameroon.

Two years later in Angola he played in the final as Ghana lost to Egypt and was also a runner-up in the 2015 edition in Equatorial Guinea, which the Black Stars lost on post-match penalties to Cote d’Ivoire.

Ayew did not participate in the 2013 finals, where he chose to sit out the tournament, and had he taken part would surely have the record for the most tournaments and appearances.

Ayew’s matches:
2008
Ghana 2 Guinea 1
Ghana 1 Namibia 0
Ghana 2 Morocco 0
Ghana 0 Cameroon 1

2010
Cote d’Ivoire 3 Ghana 1
Burkina Faso 0 Ghana 1
Angola 0 Ghana 1
Ghana 1 Nigeria 0
Egypt 1 Ghana 0

2012
Botswana 0 Ghana 1
Ghana 2 Mali 0 (goal)
Ghana 1 Guinea 1
Ghana 2 Tunisia 1 (goal)
Ghana 0 Zambia 1
Ghana 0 Mali 2

2015
Ghana 1 Senegal 2 (goal)
Algeria 0 Ghana 1
Ghana 2 South Africa 1 (goal)
Ghana 3 Guinea 0
Equatorial Guinea 0 Ghana 3 (goal)
Cote d’Ivoire 0 Ghana 0

2017
Ghana 1 Uganda 0 (goal)
Ghana 1 Mali 0
Egypt 1 Ghana 0
DR Congo 1 Ghana 2 (goal)
Cameroon 2 Ghana 0
Burkina Faso 1 Ghana 0

2019
Benin 1 Ghana 2 (goal)
Cameroon 0 Ghana 0
Ghana 2 Guinea Bissau 0
Ghana 1 Tunisia 1

2022
Ghana 0 Morocco 1
Gabon 1 Ghana 1 (goal)
Comoros Islands 3 Ghana 2

2023
Cape Verde Islands 2 Ghana 1
Ghana 2 Mozambique 2