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Mozambique national football team facts for kids

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This page is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Mozambique women's national football team.
Quick facts for kids
Mozambique
Nickname(s) Os Mambas (The Mambas)
Association Federação Moçambicana de Futebol (FMF)
Confederation CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation COSAFA (Southern Africa)
Head coach Chiquinho Conde
Captain Mexer
Most caps Domingues (111)
Top scorer Tico-Tico (30)
Home stadium Estádio do Zimpeto
FIFA code MOZ
First colours
Second colours
Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current 116 Increase 1 (7 February 2019)
Highest 66 (November 1997)
Lowest 134 (July 2005, September 2006)
Elo ranking
Current 137 Decrease 11 (3 March 2019)
Highest 85 (September 1985)
Lowest 151 (March 2003)
First international
 Mozambique 2–1 Zambia 
(Mozambique; 25 June 1975)
Biggest win
 Mozambique 6–1 Lesotho 
(Mozambique; 10 August 1980)
 Mozambique 5–0 South Sudan 
(Maputo, Mozambique; 18 May 2014)
 Mozambique 5–0 Lesotho 
(Maputo, Mozambique; 2 June 2021)
Biggest defeat
 Zimbabwe 6–0 Mozambique 
(Salisbury, Zimbabwe; 20 April 1980)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances 5 (first in 1986)
Best result Group stage (1986, 1996, 1998, 2010, 2023)
African Nations Championship
Appearances 2 (first in 2014)
Best result Quarter finals (2022)
COSAFA Cup
Appearances 19 (first in 1997)
Best result Runners-up (2008, 2015)
Medal record
COSAFA Cup
Silver 2008 South Africa
Silver 2015 South Africa
Bronze 1997 Southern Africa
Bronze 2009 Zimbabwe

The Mozambique national football team (Portuguese: Seleção Moçambicana de Futebol) represents Mozambique in men's international football competitions and is controlled by the Mozambican Football Federation, the governing body for football in Mozambique. Mozambique have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup, but they have qualified for five Africa Cup of Nations in 1986, 1996, 1998, 2010, and most recently 2023, being eliminated in the first round in all five. In 1997, the Mozambique Football Federation became a founding member of COSAFA.

Mozambique's home ground is Estádio do Zimpeto in the capital city Maputo, and can hold 42,000 spectators. The team's current head coach is Victor Matine, who became manager in July 2019, replacing previous head coach and former Portugal international Abel Xavier, who had been in charge since February 2016.

History

Beginnings

On the day of independence in 1975, Mozambique played its first ever match; a friendly against Zambia, winning 2–1. Two years later, Cuba became Mozambique's first non-African opponent when the two countries met in Mozambique, with Cuba winning 2–0. Mozambique entered World Cup qualifying for the first time in the 1982 qualifying competition. Mozambique were defeated 7–3 over two legs by Zaire in the first round.

1986 Africa Cup of Nations

Mozambique qualified for its first Africa Cup of Nations in 1986. In the qualifying competition they beat Mauritius, Malawi (on penalties), and finally Libya, winning again on penalties.

At the final tournament in Egypt, Mozambique were placed in Group A along with Senegal, Ivory Coast and hosts Egypt. They lost all their games 3–0, 2–0 and 2–0, not scoring a single goal.

1996 Africa Cup of Nations

Mozambique had to wait 10 years to qualify for another Africa Cup of Nations, as they qualified for the 1996 tournament in South Africa. They were placed in Group D along with Ivory Coast, Ghana and Tunisia. Mozambique played their first game against Tunisia in Port Elizabeth, drawing 1–1 with Tico-Tico scoring in the 4th minute. They then went on to lose 1–0 to Ivory Coast and 2–0 to Ghana, thus eliminating them from the tournament.

1998 Africa Cup of Nations

Two years later, Mozambique qualified for their third Africa Cup of Nations held in Burkina Faso. They were again placed in group D along with Morocco, Egypt and Zambia. Mozambique lost their first game against eventual tournament winners Egypt 2–0, both goals coming from Hossam Hassan. In their second game they again lost to Morocco 3–0, therefore eliminating them from the tournament with one game still remaining. In their last game against Zambia, they drew 1–1, their first goal of the tournament. This would prove to be their last African Cup of Nations game for 12 years.

2010 FIFA World Cup qualification

Mozambique entered the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification in the second round, and were placed in Group 7 with Botswana, Madagascar and African football giants Ivory Coast. They made a terrible start to qualifying, losing to Ivory Coast and minnows Botswana 1–0 and 2–1, and drawing 1–1 with Madagascar. Mozambique then went on to beat Madagascar 3–0 in Antananarivo with goals coming from Tico-Tico, Carlitos and Domingues. They then drew 1–1 with Ivory Coast and beat Botswana 1–0 in Gaborone to qualify for the third Round.

Mozambique were one of the lowest seeded teams in the third round, and were placed in Group B with Nigeria, Tunisia and Kenya. They went on to draw their first game against giants Nigeria 0–0 in Maputo. They then went on to lose their next to games against Tunisia and Kenya 2–0 and 2–1, now making it a struggle to qualify for their first FIFA World Cup. In the next game, they beat Kenya 1–0 with Tico-Tico scoring, but then a loss to Nigeria eliminated them from qualifying. In the last game they beat Tunisia 1–0 in a victory that stopped Tunisia from qualifying. Despite not qualifying for the World Cup, this win was enough to secure third place and qualification for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola.

2010 Africa Cup of Nations

After a 12-year absence from Africa Cup of Nations football, Mozambique were placed in Group C with Egypt, Nigeria and Benin. In their first game, they played Benin, drawing 2–2 after being 2–0 down, with goals coming from Miro and Fumo. They then went on to lose 2–0 to eventual tournament winners Egypt and 3–0 to Nigeria, thus eliminating them from the tournament. After the tournament, all-time top scorer and captain Tico-Tico retired from international football.

Recent years

Mozambique have yet to reach a fifth AFCON Finals despite several close misses. During the 2013 qualifiers, they reached the final round and beat Morocco 2–0 in the first leg in Maputo. However, they were beaten 4–0 in Marrakech four days later. During the 2019 qualifiers the Mambas were only denied by a Guinea-Bissau equaliser in stoppage time at the end of their final Group K match.

Recent 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

2024

Coaching history

  • Mozambique Cremildo Loforte (1980)
  • Mozambique Manaca (1986)
  • Mozambique José Geneto (1986)
  • Russia Viktor Bondarenko (1993–1995)
  • Portugal Rui Caçador (1996)
  • Mozambique Arnaldo Salvado (1996–1998)
  • Mozambique Euroflim da Graça (1999)
  • Mozambique Arnaldo Salvado (1999–2000)
  • Portugal Augusto Matine (2001–2002)
  • Russia Viktor Bondarenko (2003)
  • Mozambique Artur Semedo (2003–2006)
  • Netherlands Mart Nooij (2007–2011)
  • Germany Gert Engels (2011–2013)
  • Mozambique João Chissano (2013–2015)
  • Mozambique Hélder Muianga (2015)
  • Croatia Boris Pušić (2015)
  • Portugal Abel Xavier (2016–2019)
  • Mozambique Victor Matine (2019)
  • Mozambique Luís Gonçalves (2019–2021)
  • Portugal Horácio Gonçalves (2021)
  • Mozambique Chiquinho Conde (2021–present)

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Caps and goals correct as of 22 January 2024, after the match against Ghana.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Ernani (1998-07-09) 9 July 1998 (age 25) 29 0 Mozambique Songo
1GK Ivane Urrubal (1997-03-01) 1 March 1997 (age 27) 10 0 Mozambique Black Bulls
1GK Fazito (2003-06-09) 9 June 2003 (age 20) 3 0 Mozambique Ferroviário de Nampula
2DF Mexer (1987-09-08) 8 September 1987 (age 36) 64 3 Turkey Bandırmaspor
2DF Edmilson Dove (1994-07-18) 18 July 1994 (age 29) 43 0 South Africa Kaizer Chiefs
2DF Reinildo Mandava (1994-01-21) 21 January 1994 (age 30) 39 4 Spain Atlético Madrid
2DF Nené (1996-11-15) 15 November 1996 (age 27) 30 1 Mozambique Black Bulls
2DF Nanani (1996-02-08) 8 February 1996 (age 28) 26 0 Mozambique Songo
2DF Bruno Langa (1997-10-31) 31 October 1997 (age 26) 23 1 Portugal Chaves
2DF Domingos Macandza (1998-06-17) 17 June 1998 (age 25) 21 0 Mozambique Costa do Sol
2DF David Malembana (1995-10-11) 11 October 1995 (age 28) 6 0 Armenia Noah
3MF Domingues (1983-11-13) 13 November 1983 (age 40) 111 16 Mozambique Songo
3MF Shaquille (1997-11-24) 24 November 1997 (age 26) 40 0 Mozambique Ferroviário Maputo
3MF Amadú (1996-12-03) 3 December 1996 (age 27) 29 0 Mozambique Ferroviário Beira
3MF João Bonde (1997-01-09) 9 January 1997 (age 27) 15 0 Mozambique Ferroviário Beira
3MF Guima (1995-11-14) 14 November 1995 (age 28) 10 1 Portugal Chaves
3MF Alfons Amade (1999-11-12) 12 November 1999 (age 24) 5 1 Belgium Oostende
4FW Clésio (1994-10-11) 11 October 1994 (age 29) 50 9 Azerbaijan Gabala
4FW Witi (1996-08-26) 26 August 1996 (age 27) 40 4 Portugal Nacional
4FW Gildo (1995-01-31) 31 January 1995 (age 29) 37 3 Portugal Covilhã
4FW Stanley Ratifo (1994-12-05) 5 December 1994 (age 29) 31 4 Germany 1. CfR Pforzheim
4FW Lau King (1995-09-04) 4 September 1995 (age 28) 24 4 Angola Sagrada Esperança
4FW Geny Catamo (2001-01-26) 26 January 2001 (age 23) 23 6 Portugal Sporting CP

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for Mozambique in the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Víctor Guambe (1998-10-08) 8 October 1998 (age 25) 8 0 Mozambique Costa do Sol 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK Kimiss Zavala (2004-05-08) 8 May 2004 (age 19) 0 0 Portugal Marítimo 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK Gion Chande (1998-05-03) 3 May 1998 (age 25) 1 0 Liechtenstein Vaduz v.  Senegal, 28 March 2023
DF Francisco Muchanga (1991-11-05) 5 November 1991 (age 32) 29 0 Mozambique Costa do Sol 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Martinho Thauzene (1999-09-27) 27 September 1999 (age 24) 25 1 Portugal AVS 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Bonera (1997-04-07) 7 April 1997 (age 27) 11 1 Bahrain Al-Hala 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Foia (2001-04-15) 15 April 2001 (age 23) 2 0 Mozambique Ferroviário da Beira 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Jeremias Nhambire (2000-01-08) 8 January 2000 (age 24) 0 0 Portugal Marítimo 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Chamboco (1998-06-15) 15 June 1998 (age 25) 0 0 Mozambique Black Bulls 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Danito (1995-06-15) 15 June 1995 (age 28) 3 0 Mozambique Songo 2023 COSAFA Cup
DF Zainadine Júnior (1988-06-24) 24 June 1988 (age 35) 64 1 Portugal Marítimo v.  Senegal, 28 March 2023
MF Manuel Kambala (1991-08-21) 21 August 1991 (age 32) 38 0 South Africa Magesi 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Telinho (1988-10-15) 15 October 1988 (age 35) 34 1 Mozambique Costa do Sol 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Dário Melo (1996-01-20) 20 January 1996 (age 28) 8 0 Mozambique Songo 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Kamo-Kamo (1999-07-19) 19 July 1999 (age 24) 7 0 Portugal União de Santarém 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Gianluca Lorenzoni (2001-02-22) 22 February 2001 (age 23) 2 0 Malta Gudja United 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Ezequiel Machava (2003-01-03) 3 January 2003 (age 21) 1 0 Mozambique Ferroviário Maputo 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Keyns Abdala (2000-03-15) 15 March 2000 (age 24) 0 0 Portugal Chaves 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Isac de Carvalho (1989-07-26) 26 July 1989 (age 34) 48 6 Mozambique Costa do Sol 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Luís Miquissone (1995-07-25) 25 July 1995 (age 28) 48 9 Egypt Al Ahly 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Melque (1997-06-26) 26 June 1997 (age 26) 24 4 Mozambique Black Bulls 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Nelson Divrassone (1994-06-20) 20 June 1994 (age 29) 21 3 Mozambique Songo 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Dayo António (1995-08-20) 20 August 1995 (age 28) 13 3 Mozambique Songo 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Estevão (1995-12-01) 1 December 1995 (age 28) 11 3 Mozambique Ferroviário da Beira 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Jonathan Muiomo (1999-01-28) 28 January 1999 (age 25) 3 1 Germany Carl Zeiss Jena 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Melven Choi (2001-10-15) 15 October 2001 (age 22) 2 0 Mozambique Ferroviário da Beira 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE

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

See also: Mozambique men's international footballers
Players in bold are still active with Mozambique.

Most appearances

Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1. Domingues Pelembé 111 16 2004–present
2. Tico-Tico 94 30 1992–2010
3. Miró Lobo 84 8 2004–2015
4. Sérgio Faife 67 5 1992–2008
5. João Kapango 66 0 1996–2012
Nana Matola 66 5 1988–1999
7. Zainadine Júnior 64 1 2008–present
Mexer 64 3 2007–present
9. Momed Hagi 62 3 2005–2015
10. Telinho 61 4 2011–present

Top goalscorers

Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1. Tico-Tico 30 94 0.32 1992–2010
2. Dário Monteiro 16 48 0.33 1996–2011
Domingues Pelembé 16 111 0.14 2004–present
4. Chiquinho Conde 12 43 0.28 1985–2001
5. Gil Guiamba 11 22 0.5 1980–1983
6. Arnaldo Ouana 10 37 0.27 1987–1999
7. Luís Miquissone 9 48 0.19 2015–present
Clésio 9 50 0.18 2011–present
9. Miró Lobo 8 84 0.1 2004–2015
10. Adelino Neves Pereira 7 19 0.37 1989–1997
Nuro Tualibudane 7 21 0.33 1994–2001
Sonito 7 35 0.2 2008–2017
Jossias Macamo 7 60 0.12 1996–2005

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup Qualification
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1930 to 1974 Part of  Portugal Part of  Portugal
Argentina 1978 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
Spain 1982 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 3 7
1986 and 1990 Did not enter Declined participation
United States 1994 Did not qualify 4 0 1 3 3 11
France 1998 2 0 1 1 1 3
South Korea Japan 2002 2 1 0 1 2 2
Germany 2006 2 0 0 2 3 5
South Africa 2010 12 4 3 5 10 10
Brazil 2014 8 2 3 3 7 11
Russia 2018 2 1 0 1 1 1
Qatar 2022 8 3 1 4 5 8
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined 2 1 0 1 3 4
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total – 0/11 – – – – – – 44 12 9 23 38 62

Africa Cup of Nations

African Cup of Nations record African Cup of Nations qualification record
Appearances:5 Appearances: 21
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
Sudan 1957 Part of  Portugal Part of  Portugal
United Arab Republic 1959
Ethiopia 1962
Ghana 1963
Tunisia 1965
Ethiopia 1968
Sudan 1970
Cameroon 1972
Egypt 1974
Ethiopia 1976 Not affiliated to CAF Not affiliated to CAF
Ghana 1978
Nigeria 1980 Did not enter Did not enter
Libya 1982 Did not qualify 4 1 1 2 11 8
Ivory Coast 1984 2 1 0 1 3 4
Egypt 1986 Group stage 8th 3 0 0 3 0 7 Squad 6 2 3 1 8 5
Morocco 1988 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 3 4
Algeria 1990 2 0 0 2 0 4
Senegal 1992 4 2 0 2 3 3
Tunisia 1994 6 1 3 2 5 7
South Africa 1996 Group stage 14th 3 0 1 2 1 4 Squad 10 6 2 2 16 8
Burkina Faso 1998 16th 3 0 0 3 1 8 Squad 6 3 1 2 10 7
Ghana Nigeria 2000 Did not qualify 6 2 1 3 6 10
Mali 2002 2 1 0 1 1 1
Tunisia 2004 6 2 2 2 3 8
Egypt 2006 2 0 0 0 3 5
Ghana 2008 6 2 3 1 5 4
Angola 2010 Group stage 15th 3 0 1 2 2 7 Squad 12 4 3 5 10 10
Equatorial Guinea Gabon 2012 Did not qualify 6 2 1 3 4 6
South Africa 2013 4 1 2 1 4 6
Equatorial Guinea 2015 10 3 5 2 13 7
Gabon 2017 6 2 1 3 5 7
Egypt 2019 6 2 2 2 7 7
Cameroon 2021 6 1 1 4 5 10
Ivory Coast 2023 Group stage 21st 3 0 2 1 4 7 Squad 6 3 1 2 8 9
Morocco 2025 to be determined to be determined
Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2027
Total Group stage 5/36 15 0 4 11 8 33 — 114 41 33 40 130 140

African Nations Championship

African Nations Championship record
Appearances: 2
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
Ivory Coast 2009 Did not qualify
Sudan 2011
South Africa 2014 Group stage 16th 3 0 0 3 4 9
Rwanda 2016 Did not qualify
Morocco 2018
Cameroon 2020
Algeria 2022 Quarter finals 8th 4 1 1 2 4 6
Total Quarter finals 2/7 6 1 1 5 8 15

COSAFA Cup

Main page: COSAFA Cup

Honours

  • COSAFA Cup: 2
  • 2008, 2015 (Runners-up)

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Mozambique para niños

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