CAF Champions League facts for kids
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Organising body | CAF |
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Founded | 1964 (rebranded in 1997) |
Region | Africa |
Number of teams |
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Qualifier for |
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Related competitions | CAF Confederation Cup |
Current champions | ![]() |
Most successful club(s) | ![]() |
Television broadcasters | List of broadcasters |
The CAF Champions League is a super exciting yearly football (soccer) competition. It's organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). This tournament brings together the very best football clubs from across Africa. They play in a group stage first, then move on to knockout matches, and finally, a big home-and-away final. It's the most important club competition in African football!
The team that wins the CAF Champions League gets to play in the FIFA Club World Cup. This is a special tournament where champion clubs from all six continents compete. The winner also plays against the CAF Confederation Cup champion in the next season's CAF Super Cup. Starting in 2024, the top five teams from the Champions League also get a spot in the new FIFA Intercontinental Cup. If a team finishes second in their national league and doesn't qualify for the Champions League, they can still play in the CAF Confederation Cup, which is the second-tier competition.
Clubs from Egypt have won the most titles, with 18 wins! Morocco is next with 7 titles. Countries like Cameroon, Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco have had three different clubs win the title. Overall, 26 clubs have won this competition, and 12 of them have won it more than once. Al Ahly from Egypt is the most successful club, with a record 12 wins. They even won the most recent season in 2024, beating Espérance de Tunis 1-0.
Contents
History of the Tournament
Early Days: 1964–1997
The competition started in 1964 and was first called the African Cup of Champions Clubs. The very first team to win was Oryx Douala from Cameroon. They beat Stade Malien from Mali 2-1 in the final.
The tournament wasn't played in 1965. But in 1966, they introduced a new rule: the final would be played over two matches, one at each team's home stadium. In that year, AS Real Bamako from Mali played against Stade d'Abidjan from Ivory Coast. Real Bamako won their home game 3-1, but Stade Abidjan won their home game 4-1, taking the title 5-4 overall!
In 1967, Asante Kotoko from Ghana and TP Mazembe from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) played. Both their matches ended in a draw. So, CAF planned a third deciding match. But Kotoko didn't show up, so Mazembe was given the title. Mazembe then won the title again the next year!
However, the Ghanaian team, Kotoko, got their revenge in 1970. They met Mazembe in the final again. The first game was a 1-1 draw. But Kotoko surprised everyone by winning their away game 2-1, finally lifting the trophy they had missed out on.
The 1970s were a great time for Cameroonian club football. This success helped build the strong international football reputation Cameroon has today.


Between 1971 and 1980, Cameroonian teams won the cup four times. Canon Yaoundé won three titles (1971, 1978, and 1980), and US Douala won in 1979. During this time, Hafia Conakry from Guinea also had a golden age, winning three times (1972, 1975, and 1977).
New Name, Bigger Reputation: 1997–Present
Not much changed in the competition until 1997. That's when CAF decided to make a big change, similar to what Europe had done with their Champions League. They added a group stage to the tournament and changed its name to the CAF Champions League.
CAF also started offering prize money for the first time! The winners received US$1 million, and the runners-up got US$750,000. This made it the richest African club competition back then.
In the new format, national league champions would play through several qualifying rounds. The top 8 teams would then enter two groups of four teams. Each team played every other team in their group at home and away. The best team from each group then met in a two-legged final.
In the 2001 season, CAF added a semi-final stage. So, the top two teams from each group would play in the semi-finals, and the winners would go to the final.
The prize money increased again in 2009. Champions received $1.5 million, and runners-up got $1 million. Since 1997, teams from North Africa have been very strong in the competition. Raja Casablanca from Morocco won two of the first three new-format titles. But Al Ahly became the most successful, winning in 2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2012. Zamalek won in 2002.
Tunisian teams also started winning. Étoile du Sahel won in 2007. Espérance de Tunis won their second title in 2011.
Even with North African teams dominating, Enyimba from Nigeria won two titles in a row in 2003 and 2004. ASEC Mimosas from Ivory Coast and Accra Hearts of Oak from Ghana also won championships for West Africa. In 2010, TP Mazembe from the DRC became the first club to win the title twice on two separate occasions (1967, 1968 and 2009, 2010). In 2017, the group stage grew even bigger, from 2 groups to 4 groups, and quarter-finals were added.
The 2020–21 season was played without fans because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In an exciting all-Egyptian final, Al Ahly played their rivals Zamalek. Al Ahly won their ninth title! They then successfully defended their title in 2021, winning their 10th trophy. However, they couldn't win a third title in a row in 2022. They lost to Wydad AC from Morocco, who won their third title.
The finals went back to two-legged matches after the pandemic. Al Ahly got their revenge in 2023, taking the title back from Wydad. They won their 11th title! Then, in 2024, they defended it again, winning their 12th title against Tunisia's Esperance.
CAF plans to keep the Champions League even with the new Africa Football League starting in 2023–24. Some people think the Champions League might go back to being only knockout matches, without a group stage, like it was before 1997.
How Teams Qualify and Play
Qualification Rules
The CAF Champions League is open to the winners of all national football leagues that are part of CAF. The team that won the Champions League the previous season also gets to play. Since 2004, the second-place teams from the 12 highest-ranked countries also get to join. This makes a total of 64 teams! These 12 countries are ranked based on how well their clubs have done in the Champions League over the past 5 years.
CAF decides each year how many teams each country can send to the Champions League. The higher a country is ranked, the more teams it can send. Also, higher-ranked countries' teams might not have to play as many early qualifying rounds.
The CAF Champions League mostly works as a knockout competition. Teams play in two qualifying rounds: the preliminary stage and the first round. After the first round, the winning teams are split into four groups of four teams. Teams that lose in the first qualifying round get a second chance in the CAF Confederation Cup. The top two teams from each group then move on to a two-legged knockout stage. The winners of these matches play in a single final game to win the trophy!
Sponsorship
In 2004, MTN signed a four-year deal to sponsor CAF competitions for US$12.5 million. This was the biggest sports sponsorship deal in Africa at the time!
In 2008, CAF looked for a new sponsor. French company Orange signed an eight-year deal in 2009. The details of this deal were not shared.
On July 21, 2016, the French energy company TotalEnergies (then called Total S.A.) became a major sponsor. They signed an 8-year deal to support CAF competitions, including the Africa Cup of Nations.
Current Sponsors:
Title Sponsor | Official Sponsors | Former Sponsor | Ball Supplier |
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Prizes
Trophy and Medals
Every year, the winning team receives the CAF Champions League trophy. This trophy has been given out since the competition changed its name in 1997. The winners also get 40 gold medals, and the runners-up get 40 silver medals.
Prize Money: 1997–2008
When the competition was renamed in 1997, CAF started giving prize money to the eight teams that reached the group stage. This was the first time an African club football competition offered prize money.
Final position |
Prize money |
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Champions | US$1,000,000 |
Runners-up | US$750,000 |
Semi-finalists | US$427,500 |
3rd in group stage | US$261,250 |
4th in group stage | US$190,000 |
Prize Money: 2009–2016
CAF increased the prize money for the 8 clubs in the group stage.
Final position |
Prize money |
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Champions | US$1,500,000 |
Runners-up | US$1,000,000 |
Semi-finalists | US$700,000 |
3rd in group stage | US$500,000 |
4th in group stage | US$400,000 |
Prize Money: 2017–2022
The prize money increased again, and now 16 clubs in the group stage shared the money.
Final position |
Prize money |
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Champions | US$2,500,000 |
Runners-up | US$1,250,000 |
Semi-finalists | US$875,000 |
Quarter-finalists | US$650,000 |
3rd in group stage | US$550,000 |
4th in group stage | US$550,000 |
* Note: National Football Associations also receive an extra 5% of each amount given to clubs.
Prize Money: 2023–Present
On May 19, 2023, CAF announced another increase in prize money for the 16 clubs in the group stage. This is the latest prize money structure.
Final position |
Prize money |
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Champions | US$4,000,000 |
Runners-up | US$2,000,000 |
Semi-finalists | US$1,200,000 |
Quarter-finalists | US$900,000 |
3rd in group stage | US$700,000 |
4th in group stage | US$700,000 |
Broadcast Coverage
Here are the TV channels and networks that currently show the CAF Champions League matches:
Country/Region | Channels |
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EPTV |
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beIN Sports |
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Arryadia |
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ORTB |
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Sportfive |
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Sport TV |
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beIN Sports |
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RTB |
Latin America | ESPN |
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beIN Sports |
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Western Balkans | Sport Klub |
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beIN Sports |
Sub-Saharan Africa |
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East Africa |
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Records and Statistics
Performance by Nations
This table shows how many times clubs from different countries have won or been runners-up in the finals.
Nation | Winners | Runners-up | Total |
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18 | 10 | 28 |
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7 | 4 | 11 |
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6 | 8 | 14 |
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6 | 6 | 12 |
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5 | 2 | 7 |
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5 | 1 | 6 |
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3 | 8 | 11 |
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3 | 2 | 5 |
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2 | 5 | 7 |
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2 | 3 | 5 |
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2 | 2 | 4 |
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1 | 0 | 1 |
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0 | 2 | 2 |
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0 | 2 | 2 |
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0 | 2 | 2 |
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0 | 1 | 1 |
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0 | 1 | 1 |
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0 | 1 | 1 |
Performances by Region
This table shows how many titles clubs from different regions of Africa have won.
Federation (Region) | Clubs | Titles |
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UNAF (North Africa) | Al Ahly (12), Zamalek (5), Espérance de Tunis (4), Raja CA (3), Wydad AC (3), ES Sétif (2), JS Kabylie (2), Étoile du Sahel (1), Ismaily (1), MC Alger (1), FAR Rabat (1), Club Africain (1) | 36 |
UNIFFAC (Central Africa) | TP Mazembe (5), Canon Yaoundé (3), CARA Brazzaville (1), Oryx Douala (1), Union Douala (1), Vita Club (1) | 12 |
WAFU (West Africa) | Hafia (3), Asante Kotoko (2), Enyimba (2), ASEC Mimosas (1), Hearts of Oak (1), Stade d'Abidjan (1) | 10 |
COSAFA (Southern Africa) | Orlando Pirates (1), Mamelodi Sundowns (1) | 2 |
CECAFA (East Africa) | 0 |
Top Goalscorers by Year
This table lists the top goal scorers for each year of the competition.
Year | Footballer | Club | Goals |
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African Cup of Champions Clubs era | |||
1965 | ![]() |
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3 |
1966 | 14 | ||
1967 | 2 | ||
1968 | ![]() |
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7 |
1969 | ![]() |
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7 |
1970 | ![]() |
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4 |
1971 | ![]() |
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6 |
1972 | ![]() |
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13 |
1973 | ![]() |
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5 |
1974 | ![]() |
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10 |
1975 | ![]() |
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4 |
1976 | ![]() |
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5 |
1977 | ![]() |
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4 |
1978 | 2 | ||
1979 | ![]() |
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3 |
1980 | ![]() |
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9 |
1981 | ![]() |
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6 |
1982 | |||
1983 | |||
1984 | ![]() |
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5 |
1985 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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4 |
1986 | ![]() |
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7 |
1987 | ![]() |
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5 |
1988 | ![]() |
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7 |
1989 | ![]() |
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5 |
1990 | ![]() |
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7 |
1991 | ![]() ![]() |
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6 |
1992 | ![]() |
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6 |
1993 | ![]() |
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5 |
1994 | ![]() |
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7 |
1995 | 4 | ||
1996 | 2 | ||
Champions League era | |||
1997 | ![]() |
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7 |
1998 | 6 | ||
1999 | ![]() |
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6 |
2000 | ![]() |
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10 |
2001 | ![]() |
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9 |
2002 | 7 | ||
2003 | ![]() |
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8 |
2004 | ![]() |
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10 |
2005 |
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7 | |
2006 | ![]() |
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8 |
2007 | ![]() |
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9 |
2008 | ![]() |
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13 |
2009 | ![]() |
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8 |
2010 | ![]() |
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8 |
2011 | ![]() |
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14 |
2012 | ![]() |
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12 |
2013 | ![]() |
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7 |
2014 | 6 | ||
2015 | 7 | ||
2016 | ![]() |
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9 |
2017 | 7 | ||
2018 | ![]() |
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8 |
2018–19 | ![]() |
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7 |
2019–20 | ![]() |
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7 |
2020–21 | ![]() |
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6 |
2021–22 | ![]() |
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6 |
2022–23 |
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6 |
2023–24 | ![]() |
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4 |
All-Time Top Scorers
This table shows the players who have scored the most goals in the history of the competition.
Rank | Nat | Name | Club | Goals | Apps |
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1 | ![]() |
Trésor Mputu | TP Mazembe Kabuscorp |
39 | 73 |
2 | ![]() |
Mohamed Aboutrika | Al Ahly | 31 | 85 |
3 | ![]() |
Flávio Amado | Al Ahly | 30 | |
4 | ![]() |
Mahmoud El Khatib | Al Ahly | 28 | 30 |
5 | ![]() |
Emad Moteab | Al Ahly | 24 | 74 |
6 | ![]() |
Ali Zitouni | Espérance de Tunis | 23 | 22 |
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Edward Sadomba | Dynamos Al-Hilal Al-Ahly Benghazi |
23 | 24 | |
8 | ![]() |
Mbwana Samatta | TP Mazembe Simba SC |
21 | 26 |
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Clatous Chama | Simba SC RS Berkane |
21 | 51 | |
10 | ![]() |
Mouhcine Iajour | Moghreb Tétouan Wydad AC Raja CA |
20 | 36 |
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Dioko Kaluyituka | TP Mazembe | 20 | 45 | |
13 | ![]() |
Emmanuel Osei Kuffour | Accra Hearts of Oak | 19 | 13 |
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Bakri Al-Madina | Al-Merrikh Al-Hilal |
19 | 35 | |
15 | ![]() |
Gamal Abdel-Hamid | Al Ahly Zamalek |
18 | 41 |
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Kelechi Osunwa | Al-Merrikh Al-Hilal |
18 | 21 | |
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Hussein El Shahat | Al Ahly | 18 | 55 | |
18 | ![]() |
Mudather El Tahir | Al-Hilal | 17 | 27 |
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Hossam Hassan | Al Ahly Zamalek |
17 | 31 | |
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Walid Soliman | Al Ahly | 17 | 82 | |
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Mohamed Barakat | Al Ahly | 17 | 68 | |
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Salif Keïta | AS Real Bamako Stade Malien |
17 | ||
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Themba Zwane | Mamelodi Sundowns | 17 | 70 | |
24 | ![]() |
Billel Dziri | USM Alger Étoile du Sahel |
16 | |
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Joetex Asamoah Frimpong | Enyimba CS Sfaxien |
16 | ||
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Kamilou Daouda | Coton Sport Al-Ittihad Tripoli |
16 | 37 | |
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Ocansey Mandela | Horoya | 16 | 55 | |
28 | ![]() |
Karim Aribi | Étoile du Sahel CR Belouizdad |
15 | 24 |
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Ali Maaloul | Al Ahly CS Sfaxien |
15 | 87 | |
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Yannick N'Djeng | JSM Béjaïa Espérance de Tunis |
15 | 39 | |
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Tiago Azulão | Atlético Petróleos de Luanda | 15 | 38 | |
31 | ![]() |
Muhannad El Tahir | Al-Hilal | 14 | 17 |
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Achraf Bencharki | Wydad AC Zamalek |
14 | 38 | |
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Jackson Muleka | TP Mazembe | 14 | 38 | |
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Mohamed Nahiri | Wydad AC Difaâ Hassani El Jadidi Raja CA |
14 | 40 | |
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Mohamed Sherif | Al Ahly | 14 | 39 | |
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Anice Badri | Espérance de Tunis | 14 | 56 | |
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Emeka Nwanna | Enyimba Heartland |
14 | 18 | |
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Peter Shalulile | Mamelodi Sundows | 14 | 29 |
See also
In Spanish: Liga de Campeones de la CAF para niños
- African Football League
- CAF Women's Champions League
- CAF Confederation Cup
- CAF Super Cup
- African Cup Winners' Cup
- CAF Cup