AFCON silver medals have long symbolized how close nations have come to conquering African football’s biggest prize. Since the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) was first staged in 1957, finishing as runners-up has often highlighted teams that combined quality, consistency, and resilience, even if ultimate glory narrowly escaped them.
While winning the trophy remains the ultimate goal, finishing second is a strong indicator of a nation’s consistency and ability to compete at the highest level. At the recently concluded 2025 AFCON, hosted by Morocco, the Atlas Lions narrowly missed out on lifting the trophy, settling for silver on home soil. This result took Morocco’s total AFCON silver medals to two, underlining their growing pedigree in African football.
In this article, we explore Morocco’s place among AFCON’s runners-up elite and take a closer look at other countries that have amassed multiple silver medals over the tournament’s rich history.
The Most AFCON Silver Medals
Ghana and Nigeria – 5 Silvers Each
Ghana and Nigeria jointly hold the record for the most AFCON silver medals, with five runners-up finishes each.
- Ghana: 1968, 1970, 1992, 2010, 2015
Despite being four-time AFCON champions, the Black Stars are also known for heartbreaks in finals, including penalty shoot-out losses in 1992 and 2015. - Nigeria: 1984, 1988, 1990, 2000, 2023
The Super Eagles have a long history of reaching finals, with their most recent silver coming after losing the 2023 final to hosts Côte d’Ivoire.
Together, Ghana and Nigeria symbolize sustained dominance in African football, even when ultimate victory narrowly slipped away.
Egypt – 3 Silvers
Africa’s most successful AFCON nation, Egypt, have finished runners-up three times: 1962, 2017, and 2021.
Even with a record seven AFCON titles, these silver medals highlight that even the Pharaohs have faced painful defeats in finals, particularly in recent years.
Countries with Two AFCON Silver Medals
Several nations have reached the final twice without winning on those occasions:
- Sudan – 1959, 1963
- Senegal – 2002, 2019
- Cameroon – 1986, 2008
- Côte d’Ivoire – 2006, 2012
- Zambia – 1974, 1994
- Tunisia – 1965, 1996
For teams like Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire, these silver medals often preceded later triumphs, proving that repeated near-misses can eventually lead to championship success.
Countries with One AFCON Silver Medal
Several nations have reached the AFCON final once and finished as runners-up:
- Ethiopia – 1957
- Algeria – 1980
- Libya – 1982
- Mali – 1972
- Guinea – 1976
- Uganda – 1978
- South Africa – 1998
- Morocco – 2004
- Burkina Faso – 2013
For many of these countries, the runner-up finish remains the greatest achievement in their AFCON history.
