Gabon national football team facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Gabon

Nickname(s)	Les Panthères (The Panthers)
Association	Gabonese Football Federation (Fédération Gabonaise de Football, FEGAFOOT)
Confederation	CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation	UNIFFAC (Central Africa)
Head coach	Thierry Mouyouma
Captain	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Most caps	Didier Ovono (112)
Top scorer	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (33)
Home stadium	Stade d'Angondjé
FIFA code	GAB
First colours
FIFA ranking
Current	85 (7 February 2019)
Highest	30 (July 2009)
Lowest	125 (April–May 2003)
Elo ranking
Current	103 1 (3 March 2019)
Highest	63 (November 1996)
Lowest	123 (June 2004)
First international
Upper Volta 5–4 Gabon  (Madagascar; 13 April 1960)
Biggest win
Gabon 7–0 Benin  (Libreville, Gabon; 2 April 1995)
Biggest defeat
Cameroon 6–0 Gabon  (Abidjan, Ivory Coast; 26 December 1961)  Morocco 6–0 Gabon  (Rabat, Morocco; 15 November 2006)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances	8 (first in 1994)
Best result	Quarter-finals, 1996 and 2012

The Gabon national football team (French: Équipe de football du Gabon) represents Gabon in men's international football. The team's nickname is The Panthers and it is governed by the Gabonese Football Federation. They have never qualified for the FIFA World Cup, but have qualified eight times (as of 2021) for the Africa Cup of Nations. Gabon is a member of both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).

History

1960s

Gabon made their debut on 13 April 1960 by entering the first Friendship Games (Jeux de L'Amitié) tournament, created for French-speaking African countries (a precursor to the modern African Games), held in Antananarivo, Madagascar. In the First Round they were drawn against Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso), who were also making their debut, and lost 5–4, despite leading 3–2 at half-time. They did not play another match for over a year and a half, until the next time the tournament was staged, in December 1961 in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. They were drawn in Pool 3 alongside Cameroon and Senegal. Gabon began the tournament with a 3–2 defeat to Senegal on Christmas Day, before being thrashed 6–0 by Cameroon on Boxing Day, finishing bottom of their group. A few months after the tournament, the Gabonese Football Federation (Federation Gabonaise de Football) was formed to officially oversee the development of the national team and the domestic game. The new association would not have to wait long for their first win, as in their very next match on 14 July 1962 they defeated the Congo 3–1 in their first match on home soil. They played 2 more matches in 1962, a 1–1 home draw with Cameroon on 20 August, a vast improvement over their previous meeting, and a 3–1 away defeat to the Congo on 16 September, before entering the third and final Friendship Games held in April 1963 in Dakar, Senegal. They were drawn in Group C, along with British Gambia, the France amateur team, and Upper Volta. They opened on 12 April with a strong 4–0 win over Upper Volta, but were comfortably beaten 3–0 by the French amateurs 2 days later. They drew their final game 2–2 with British Gambia on 16 April and finished 2nd in the group, a marked improvement over their previous 2 appearances at the tournament; however only the group winners progressed and therefore Gabon were eliminated. A few months later, Gabon entered qualification for the 1966 FIFA World Cup held in England. However, on 8 October 1964 they withdrew from the competition, along with all the other African entrants, in protest at FIFA's decision to only award 1 finals place to all of Africa, Asia and Oceania.

As a result of this boycott, Gabon did not play another match for over two years until August 1965, when they hosted a friendly double-header against Nigeria, drawing 2–2 on 28 August and losing 4–1 the next day. At the 35th FIFA Congress held in London, England on 6 July 1966, Gabon were officially admitted as full members of FIFA. They played their next match on 2 December 1966 when they suffered a 4–3 defeat against the Democratic Republic of the Congo, before playing them again on 4 January 1967 at home, this time winning 1–0. They played one more friendly, a 3–0 home defeat to the Ivory Coast on 28 March, before entering qualification for the 1968 Olympic football tournament, held in Mexico. In the First Round, they were drawn against Guinea with whom they drew the first leg 0–0 at home on 18 June, before being routed in the second leg 6–1, on 9 July. In 1967, they also became full members of CAF. Following on from the Olympic qualifiers, Gabon did not play another match for over two years until they travelled to Dahomey (now Benin) on 24 August 1969 to play a friendly, which they lost 1–0.

1970s

Gabon then did not play for over a year, before entering qualification for the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time. Their attempt to qualify for the 1972 tournament held in Cameroon fell at the first hurdle however, as they were drawn against Ivory Coast in the First Round. They lost the first leg at home 2–1 on 8 November 1970, and were defeated 1–0 away two weeks later. Gabon then entered qualification for the 1972 Olympic football tournament held in West Germany. In the First Round they were drawn against Cameroon. Having lost the first leg 3–2 in Libreville on 30 May 1971, Gabon forfeited the tie as they did not travel to Yaoundé to contest the return leg. Following this ignominious exit, Gabon entered qualification for the 1974 FIFA World Cup held in West Germany, and were due to play Cameroon in the First Round the Summer of 1972, however they withdrew before the matches could be played. As a result of this withdrawal, they did not play another match for over a year until they entered the football tournament at the 1972 Central African Cup (a precursor to the Central African Games) held in Brazzaville, Congo. The 5-team round robin tournament included, alongside Gabon; Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Congo, and Chad. They played their first match on 16 July against the Congo, losing 3–0. Two days later they were defeated 3–1 by the Central African Republic and on 20 July they were soundly beaten by Cameroon, 4–0. However they salvaged some pride by beating Chad 1–0 in their final match on 22 July to avoid the bottom spot. Furthermore, this tournament doubled up as a qualification group for the 1973 All-Africa Games football tournament, and as Gabon did not win the group, they failed to qualify. A year later they entered qualification for the 1974 African Cup of Nations held in Egypt, and were due to play the Central African Republic in the summer of 1973, however they once again withdrew before a ball was kicked.

As a result, Gabon did not play a single match for almost 4 years until they thrashed São Tomé and Príncipe 6–1 at home in a friendly in May 1976, which was São Tomé and Príncipe's first international match. A few weeks later Gabon hosted the inaugural Central African Games. In the football tournament, they were drawn into Group B alongside Burundi, Cameroon and Rwanda. They played their opening match on 28 June, registering a convincing 4–1 win over Burundi. Then, on 1 July they played out a 1–1 draw against Zaire who had travelled to Gabon to play each team in Group B in a friendly capacity, and had not entered the competition proper. On 5 July Gabon gained another impressive victory, beating Rwanda 3–0. In their final group game on 7 July they held neighbours Cameroon to creditable 0–0 draw, thus securing 2nd place (having only missed out on the top spot via goal difference) and qualification for the semi-finals. On 9 July they faced Group A winners the Congo, and were narrowly beaten 1–0. However, two days later they managed to clinch 3rd place with a 3–1 victory of the Central African Republic, to put the seal on an impressive performance in their own tournament. A year later, Gabon entered qualification for the 1978 African Cup of Nations held in Ghana. After being given a bye in the First Round, they were drawn against the Congo in the Second. They lost the first leg away 3–2 on 17 July 1977, and drew the second at home 3–3 on 31 July, losing 6–5 on aggregate. Later that year, they entered a qualification tournament for the football competition at the 1978 All-Africa Games held in Algiers, Algeria. The qualification tournament for their zone, which was held in Cameroon, consisted of 2 groups, with the top two teams in each group progressing to the semi-finals. In Gabon's group (B) were Burundi, the Congo and Equatorial Guinea. They beat Equatorial Guinea 2–0 in their opening match on Christmas Eve, defeated the Congo 1–0 on Boxing Day and beat Burundi 2–0 two days later. With 3 wins out of 3, they topped their group and faced Group A runners-up Chad in the semi-finals to whom they lost 3–1 on New Year's Eve, and therefore failed to qualify, as only the tournament winner went to the finals. A few months later in February 1978, they hosted a friendly against Nigeria, which they lost 1–0. In January 1979, they registered a 2–2 away draw against Rwanda, before defeating Ivory Coast 2–1 at home in April.

2010s

Stéphane N'Guéma and Marouane Chamakh During the match Morocco and Gabon at the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification.

In the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, Gabon upset Cameroon 1–0 and had a good chance of progressing to the quarter-finals after a scoreless draw against Tunisia. However, Gabon lost 2–1 to Zambia as it finished in its group with a three-way tie with Zambia and Cameroon. Gabon only scored twice in the group stage and were eliminated on the goals scored tiebreaker. In 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, Gabon co-hosted the tournament as it won their group matches: 2–0 against Niger, 3–2 against Morocco, and 1–0 against Tunisia. The second match saw Gabon qualify for its first quarter-final since 1996 in the most dramatic circumstances. Gabon had come back to lead 2–1 only for Morocco to tie the match in early stoppage time. However, on the final play of the game, Gabon scored in the eighth minute of stoppage time, from a direct free kick. Eventually, Gabon lost 5–4 in penalties (1–1 a.e.t) in the quarterfinal against Mali, after a penalty missed by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who had scored three goals in the tournament.

Gabon began its 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign in the second round in Group E as it was drawn with Niger, Burkina Faso, and Congo. Despite opening its campaign with a scoreless draw against Niger, Gabon lost 3–0 due to having fielded ineligible player Charly Moussono. After four qualifiers, Gabon scored only one goal, but thanks to an Aubameyang hat-trick on 15 June 2013, Gabon stayed in contention for a play-off berth with a 4–1 victory over Niger. However, Burkina Faso eliminated Gabon in the final qualifier with the 1–0 result as Gabon finished third in its group.

For the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, Gabon has been drawn to qualify against Togo. Even though Daniel Cousin scored in each leg against Togo, Gabon missed out on the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations as it lost 3–2 on aggregate. A year later, Gabon played six qualifiers for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations as it was drawn with Burkina Faso, Angola and Lesotho. Despite a stunning 1–1 result in Lesotho in qualifying, Gabon finished ahead of Burkina Faso to top the group as it qualified for the tournament with a game to spare in Angola. In January 2015, Gabon was drawn along with Burkina Faso, Congo and Equatorial Guinea. However, its 2–0 victory on the opening day of the tournament were all the points Gabon achieved during the tournament as it suffered a shocking exit in the group stage.

Team Image

Kit sponsorship

Kit providers	Period
Airness	2006-2010
Puma	2012-2016
Adidas	2017-2018
Kappa	2019-2023
Puma	2024-

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.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

2023

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification 16 November	Gabon	2–1	Kenya	Franceville, Gabon
17:00 UTC+1	Bouanga  60' Kanga  88'	https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400017607	Juma  40'	Stadium: Stade de Franceville Referee: Mohamed Maarouf Eid Mansour (Egypt)

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification 19 November	Burundi	1–2	Gabon	Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
16:00 UTC+3	Bigirimana  87'	https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400017609	Allevinah  35' Bouanga  83'	Stadium: Benjamin Mkapa (National Stadium) Referee: Issa Sy (Senegal)

2024

Friendly 22 March	Senegal	3–0	Gabon	Amiens, France
20:30 UTC+1	Appindangoyé  12' (o.g.) Faye  44' Mané  90+2'	https://int.soccerway.com/matches/2024/03/22/world/friendlies/senegal/gabon/4331385/		Stadium: Stade de la Licorne Referee: Stéphanie Frappart (France)

Friendly 25 March	Gabon	1–1	Congo	Chambly, France
20:30 UTC+1	Lemina  42'	https://int.soccerway.com/matches/2024/03/25/world/friendlies/gabon/congo/4336766/	Ganvoula  73'	Stadium: Stade des Marais

2026 World Cup qualification 7 June	Ivory Coast	1–0	Gabon	Korhogo, Ivory Coast
19:00 UTC±0	S. Fofana  36'	https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400018195		Stadium: Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium Attendance: 17,522 Referee: Omar Abdulkadir Artan (Somalia)

2026 World Cup qualification 11 June	Gabon	3–2	Gambia	Franceville, Gabon
20:00 UTC+1	Allevinah  52' Aubameyang  70' Bouanga  71'	https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400018190	Minteh  33' Adams  76'	Stadium: Stade de Franceville Referee: Sadok Selmi (Tunisia)

2025 AFCON qualification 6 September	Morocco	4–1	Gabon	Agadir, Morocco
20:00 UTC+1	Ziyech  10' (pen.), 26' (pen.) Brahim  59' El Kaabi  82'	https://www.cafonline.com/caf-africa-cup-of-nations/match-centre?competition=601&season=2024&match=2459858	Aubameyang  40' (pen.)	Stadium: Adrar Stadium Attendance: 38,000 Referee: Dahane Beida (Mauritania)

2025 AFCON qualification 10 September	Gabon	2–0	Central African Republic	Franceville, Gabon
17:00 UTC+1	Aubameyang  11' (pen.) Babicka  40'	https://int.soccerway.com/matches/2024/09/10/africa/africa-cup-of-nations-qualification/gabon/central-african-republic/4406333/		Stadium: Stade de Franceville Attendance: 8,679 Referee: Peter Waweru (Kenya)

Coaching history

Caretaker managers are listed in italics.

Coaching staff

Position	Name
Head coach	Thierry Mouyouma
Assistant coaches	Ghislain Abessolo François Nguema
Goalkeeping coach	Didier Ovono
Fitness coach	Ambroise Engome
Match analyst	Philippe Ndoutou
Performance coach	Fabrice Moubouyou
Team doctors	Dr. Claude Moundoungou Dr. Guillaume Mve Ayong
Physiotherapists	Jean-Pierre Eyi Ebong Maurice Mba Mezui Jules Moubamba Patrice Bivigou
Team coordinator	Lucien Nziengui
Technical director	Jean-Baptiste Ekomo Oyono

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification matches against Morocco and Central African Republic on 6 and 10 September 2024.

Caps and goals correct as of: 10 September 2024, after the match against Central African Republic.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Loyce Mbaba	(1998-05-04) 4 May 1998 (age 27)	4	0	AS Mangasport
	1GK	Anse Ngoubi Demba	(2000-01-31) 31 January 2000 (age 25)	3	0	US Raon-l'Étape
	1GK	Loïc Owono	(1999-09-18) 18 September 1999 (age 25)	1	0	15 de Agosto
	2DF	Bruno Ecuele Manga	(1988-07-16) 16 July 1988 (age 36)	106	9	Niort
	2DF	Aaron Appindangoyé	(1992-02-20) 20 February 1992 (age 33)	67	2	Kocaelispor
	2DF	Alex Moucketou-Moussounda	(2000-10-10) 10 October 2000 (age 24)	21	1	Aris Limassol
	2DF	Anthony Oyono	(2001-04-12) 12 April 2001 (age 24)	18	0	Frosinone
	2DF	Jacques Ekomié	(2003-08-19) 19 August 2003 (age 21)	10	0	Angers
	2DF	Jérémy Oyono	(2001-04-12) 12 April 2001 (age 24)	7	0	Frosinone
	2DF	Urie-Michel Mboula	(2003-04-30) 30 April 2003 (age 22)	2	0	Şanlıurfaspor
	2DF	Yannis M'Bemba	(2001-07-01) 1 July 2001 (age 23)	1	0	Dordrecht
	3MF	Guélor Kanga	(1990-08-01) 1 August 1990 (age 34)	72	3	Red Star Belgrade
	3MF	Mario Lemina	(1993-09-01) 1 September 1993 (age 31)	32	3	Wolverhampton Wanderers
	3MF	Serge-Junior Ngouali	(1992-01-23) 23 January 1992 (age 33)	16	0	Sarpsborg
	3MF	Eric Bocoum	(1996-03-10) 10 March 1996 (age 29)	5	0	Gol Gohar Sirjan
	3MF	Roy Mouniengue	(2005-12-01) 1 December 2005 (age 19)	1	0	Stade Mandji
	3MF	Brimau Nziengui	(2001-01-24) 24 January 2001 (age 24)	1	0	Villers-Houlgate
	4FW	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	(1989-06-18) 18 June 1989 (age 35)	79	33	Al Qadsiah
	4FW	Denis Bouanga	(1994-11-11) 11 November 1994 (age 30)	42	9	Los Angeles FC
	4FW	Jim Allevinah	(1995-02-27) 27 February 1995 (age 30)	26	8	Angers
	4FW	David Sambissa	(1996-01-11) 11 January 1996 (age 29)	15	0	İstanbulspor
	4FW	Jérémie Obounet	(2002-08-17) 17 August 2002 (age 22)	5	0	Antequera
	4FW	Rody Effaghe	(2004-04-11) 11 April 2004 (age 21)	1	0	Gomel
	4FW	Edlin Essang-Matouti	(2003-07-25) 25 July 2003 (age 21)	1	0	JS Kabylie

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up for Gabon in the last twelve months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Junior Noubi Fotso	(1999-06-20) 20 June 1999 (age 25)	3	0	Vannes OC	v.  Burundi; 19 November 2023
DF	Johann Obiang	(1993-07-05) 5 July 1993 (age 31)	47	0	Pau	v.  Gambia; 11 June 2024
DF	Stane Essono	(1998-05-28) 28 May 1998 (age 26)	1	0	Dynamo Brest	v.  Gambia; 11 June 2024
DF	Sidney Obissa	(2000-05-04) 4 May 2000 (age 25)	11	0	Villefranche	v.  Burundi; 19 November 2023
MF	Didier Ndong	(1994-05-17) 17 May 1994 (age 30)	48	1	Esteghlal	v.  Burundi; 19 November 2023
MF	Medwin Biteghé	(1996-09-01) 1 September 1996 (age 28)	18	0	Jeddah	v.  Gambia; 11 June 2024
MF	Clech Loufilou	(1999-04-12) 12 April 1999 (age 26)	8	0	Al-Minaa	v.  Congo; 25 March 2024
MF	Jack Lissonga	(1996-02-22) 22 February 1996 (age 29)	2	0	Avoine OCC	v.  Burundi; 19 November 2023
FW	Axel Méyé	(1995-06-06) 6 June 1995 (age 29)	37	4	CS Constantine	v.  Gambia; 11 June 2024
FW	Shavy Babicka	(2000-06-01) 1 June 2000 (age 24)	13	2	Toulouse	v.  Congo; 25 March 2024
FW	Aaron Boupendza	(1996-08-07) 7 August 1996 (age 28)	35	8	FC Cincinnati	v.  Burundi; 19 November 2023
FW	Alan Do Marcolino	(2002-03-19) 19 March 2002 (age 23)	8	1	US Quevilly	v.  Burundi; 19 November 2023
DEC Player refused to join the team after the call-up. INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury. PRE Preliminary squad. RET Player has retired from international football. SUS Suspended from the national team.

Records

Players in bold are still active with Gabon.

Most appearances

Didier Ovono is Gabon's most capped player with 112 appearances.

Top goalscorers

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is Gabon's top scorer with 31 goals.

Competition records

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930 to 1958	Part of  France									Part of  France
1962	Not a FIFA member									Not a FIFA member
1966	Withdrew									Withdrew
1970	Did not enter									Did not enter
1974	Withdrew									Withdrew
1978 to 1986	Did not enter									Did not enter
1990	Did not qualify									6	2	0	4	5	9
1994										4	2	1	1	7	5
1998										7	2	1	4	4	11
2002										2	1	0	1	1	2
2006										12	3	5	4	15	14
2010										12	7	0	5	17	10
2014										6	2	1	3	5	6
2018										8	2	3	3	3	8
2022										6	2	1	3	7	8
2026	To be determined									4	3	0	1	7	5
2030										To be determined
2034
Total	—	0/15	–	–	–	–	–	–		67	26	12	29	71	78

Africa Cup of Nations

Africa Cup of Nations record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1957	Part of  France									Part of  France
1959
1962	Not affiliated to CAF									Not affiliated to CAF
1963
1965
1968
1970	Did not enter									Did not enter
1972	Did not qualify									2	0	0	2	1	3
1974	Withdrew									Withdrew
1976	Did not enter									Did not enter
1978	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	5	6
1980	Did not enter									Did not enter
1982	Withdrew									Withdrew
1984	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	2	6
1986										2	0	1	1	1	3
1988										2	1	0	1	1	1
1990										6	3	0	3	6	6
1992										6	2	3	1	3	2
1994	Group stage	12th	2	0	0	2	0	7		6	4	2	0	10	2
1996	Quarter-finals	7th	3	1	1	1	4	3		4	3	0	1	8	2
1998	Did not qualify									6	1	4	1	5	5
2000	Group stage	16th	3	0	1	2	2	6		8	5	1	2	15	10
2002	Did not qualify									8	3	3	2	13	10
2004										6	2	0	4	7	7
2006										12	3	5	4	15	14
2008										4	2	1	1	6	5
2010	Group stage	10th	3	1	1	1	2	2		6	4	0	2	8	3
2012	Quarter-finals	5th	4	3	1	0	7	3		Qualified as hosts
2013	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	2	3
2015	Group stage	12th	3	1	0	2	2	3		6	3	3	0	9	4
2017		9th	3	0	3	0	2	2		Qualified as host
2019	Did not qualify									6	2	2	2	7	5
2021	Round of 16	12th	4	1	3	0	5	4		6	3	1	2	8	6
2023	Did not qualify									6	2	1	3	3	5
2025										6	3	1	2	7	9
2027	To be determined									To be determined
2029
Total	Quarter-finals	8/34	25	7	10	8	24	27		116	43	30	43	135	108

African Nations Championship

• 2009 – Did not qualify
• 2011 – Group stage
• 2014 – Quarter-finals
• 2016 – Group stage
• 2018 – Withdrew
• 2020 – Banned
• 2022 – Did not enter

Honours

Regional

• CEMAC Cup
  • Champions: 2013
  • Runners-up: 2007
  • Third place: 2005, 2006
• UDEAC Cup
  • Champions: 1985, 1988
  • Third place: 1987, 1989
• UNIFAC Cup
  • Champions: 1999
• Central African Games
  • Bronze medal: 1976, 1981

See also

In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Gabón para niños