| Ivory Coast | |
| Nickname: | (The Elephants) |
| Association: | Fédération Ivorienne de Football (FIF) |
| Sub-Confederation: | WAFU (West Africa) |
| Confederation: | CAF (Africa) |
| Website: | fifciv.com |
| Coach: | Emerse Faé |
| Captain: | Serge Aurier |
| Most Caps: | Didier Zokora (123) |
| Top Scorer: | Didier Drogba (65) |
| Home Stadium: | Stade Alassane Ouattara |
| Fifa Trigramme: | CIV |
| Fifa Max: | 12 |
| Fifa Max Date: | February 2013, April–May 2013 |
| Fifa Min: | 75 |
| Fifa Min Date: | March–May 2004 |
| Elo Max: | 10 |
| Elo Max Date: | 26 January 2013 |
| Elo Min: | 70 |
| Elo Min Date: | 6 October 1996 |
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| First Game: | 3–2 (Madagascar, 13 April 1960) |
| Largest Win: | (Abidjan, Ivory Coast; 27 December 1961) |
| Largest Loss: | 5–0 (Rotterdam, Netherlands; 4 June 2017) |
| World Cup Apps: | 3 |
| World Cup First: | 2006 |
| World Cup Best: | Group stage (2006, 2010, 2014) |
| Regional Name: | Africa Cup of Nations |
| Regional Cup Apps: | 25 |
| Regional Cup First: | 1965 |
| Regional Cup Best: | Champions (1992, 2015, 2024) |
| 2Ndregional Name: | African Nations Championship |
| 2Ndregional Cup Apps: | 5 |
| 2Ndregional Cup First: | 2009 |
| 2Ndregional Cup Best: | Third place (2016) |
| Confederations Cup Apps: | 1 |
| Confederations Cup First: | 1992 |
| Confederations Cup Best: | Fourth place (1992) |
The Ivory Coast national football team (French: Équipe de football de Côte d'Ivoire, recognized as the Côte d'Ivoire by FIFA[1]) represents Ivory Coast in men's international football. Nicknamed the Elephants, the team is managed by the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF). The team has won the Africa Cup of Nations three times, in 1992, 2015 and 2024, and has qualified for the FIFA World Cup three times, in 2006, 2010, and 2014.
Ivory Coasts's home colours are all orange. Since 2020 their home games have been played at Alassane Ouattara Stadium, in Abidjan. Prior to this their home ground was Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium, also in Abidjan. Didier Zokora holds the record for number of caps, with 123. The nation's leading goalscorer is Didier Drogba, who scored 65 goals for the Elephants in 105 Appearances.
The team played its first international match against Dahomey, now known as Benin, which they won 32 on 13 April 1960 in Madagascar.
The team took a large 110 victory against the Central African Republic. In 1961 the team made their first appearance in the Africa Cup of Nations. After gaining independence from France, the team finished third in the 1963 and 1965 tournaments.
Ivory Coast's performances in the 1970s were mixed. In the 1970 African Cup of Nations, the team finished top of their group, but lost to Ghana – the powerhouses of African football at the time – in the semi-finals, and went on to finish 4th after losing the third-place play-off to the United Arab Republic (now Egypt). They failed to qualify for the 1972 edition, losing 4–3 to Congo-Brazzaville in the final qualifying round. They qualified in 1974 but finished bottom of their group with only a single point, then failed to qualify in 1976, again losing to Congo-Brazzaville (now simply known as the Congo) in the first round.
The team initially qualified for 1978, beating Mali 2–1 on aggregate, but were disqualified for fielding an ineligible player in the second leg. Mali were also disqualified, due to police and stadium security assaulting the match officials during the first leg, and so Upper Volta, who Ivory Coast had beaten in the first qualifying round, inherited their place.
In 1984, the team hosted the African Cup of Nations for the first time, but failed to get out of their group. In 1986, they narrowly qualified from their group on goals scored, and went on to finish third once more, beating Morocco 3–2 in the third-place play-off.
At the 1992 Africa Cup of Nations, Ivory Coast beat Algeria 30 and drew 00 with Congo to finish top of their group. An extra-time victory over Zambia and a penalty shoot-out win over Cameroon took them to the final for the first time, where they faced Ghana. The match again went to a penalty shoot-out, which became (at the time) the highest-scoring in international football; Ivory Coast eventually triumphed 11–10 to win the title for the first time. They were unable to defend their title in 1994, losing to Nigeria in the semi-finals.
The Ivory Coast team is notable for having participated in (and won) the two highest-scoring penalty shoot-outs in international football competition — the 24-shot shoot-out in the final of the 1992 African Cup of Nations when Ghana was defeated 11–10, and the 24-shot shoot-out in the quarter-final of the 2006 African Cup of Nations, when Cameroon was defeated 12–11. In 2015, Ivory Coast once again defeated Ghana in the final of an 2015 African Cup of Nations with a 22-shot shoot-out, winning 9–8.
In October 2005, Ivory Coast secured qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, which was to be their first-ever appearance at the tournament. Having been drawn into a "Group of Death" that also featured Cameroon and Egypt, Ivory Coast went into the final match second behind Cameroon, but qualified after beating Sudan 3–1 while Cameroon could only draw with Egypt.
In the tournament itself, Ivory Coast were drawn into another Group of Death, against Argentina, Holland, and Serbia and Montenegro. They lost 2–1 to Argentina – with Didier Drogba scoring the team's first-ever World Cup goal in the 82nd minute – and then 2–1 to the Netherlands, meaning they had already been eliminated by the time they played Serbia and Montenegro. Despite going 2–0 down after just 20 minutes, Ivory Coast came back to win 3–2, with Bonaventure Kalou scoring an 86th-minute penalty to give Ivory Coast their first-ever World Cup victory.
After Uli Stielike left before the 2008 African Cup of Nations, due to his son's health, co-trainer Gerard Gili took his position. To compensate of the lack of another co-coach, Didier Drogba acted as a player-coach. This was only the second time that a player had also acted as a coach at the tournament, after George Weah was both player and coach for Liberia during the 2002 tournament.
Ivory Coast qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, and were again drawn in a "Group of Death", against five-time champions Brazil, Portugal, and North Korea. Having managed a 0–0 draw against Portugal, a 3–1 defeat to Brazil meant that in order to qualify from their group, they would have to beat North Korea, Brazil needed to beat Portugal, and (thanks to Portugal's 7–0 win over North Korea) there needed to be a substantial swing in goal difference. Ivory Coast won 3–0, but Portugal held Brazil to a 0–0 draw and Ivory Coast were once again eliminated in the group stages.The team made a third appearance in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, where they were drawn in Group C against Colombia, Greece, and Japan. After coming from behind to beat Japan 2–1, Ivory Coast then lost 2–1 to Colombia, leaving their qualification in the balance. In their final match against Greece, the score was 1–1 going into stoppage time, and with Japan losing 4–1 to Colombia, Ivory Coast looked set to qualify. However, in the 93rd minute, Giovanni Sio gave away a penalty which Georgios Samaras converted, giving Greece both the victory and the place in the last 16; Ivory Coast, meanwhile, went out in the group stage for the third tournament in a row.
In 2015, the national team won the Africa Cup of Nations for a second time in Equatorial Guinea, defeating Ghana in a penalty shoot-out after a scoreless game.
The team's streak of World Cup qualifications came to an end at the 2018 tournament. Needing a win in their final match against Morocco, they instead lost 2–0, meaning Morocco qualified instead.
In early 2024, Ivory Coast hosted the Africa Cup of Nations for the second time.[2] Following a 4–0 defeat to Equatorial Guinea and third-placed finish in the group stage, coach Jean-Louis Gasset was dismissed, and assistant coach Emerse Faé was hired as caretaker in the knockout stages, as the national team qualified as one of the best third-placed teams. Later on, Ivory Coast managed to defeat the defending champions Senegal in the penalty shoot-outs, Mali after extra-time, and DR Congo in the semi-finals.[3] They eventually won the title, defeating Nigeria 2–1 in the final, marking their third victory.[4] For the first time in the history of the African Cup of Nations, it was won by a team that changed coaches during the tournament.
From 1964 to 2020, Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium, a 50,000-seater stadium in Abidjan was the main venue used to host home matches. In 2020, the 60,000-seat Alassane Ouattara Stadium, also in Abidjan, was opened ahead of the 2023 Africa Cup Of Nations.[5]
Supporters of the Elephants are known to be among the most colorful in Africa. At Ivory Coast matches, the Elephants supporter sections typically include a percussion band that mimics the sounds of an elephant traveling through a forest.
See main article: Ivory Coast national football team results (2020–present). The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
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(1960)
Alphonse Bissouma Tapé (1965) (1967–68) (1970–72)
Santa Rosa (1972–74) (1976–80) David Ferreira "Duque" (1984)
Pancho Gonzales (1986) Yeo Martial (1987–88, 1992) Kaé Oulaï (1989) Philippe Troussier (1993)
Henryk Kasperczak (1993–94) Pierre Pleimelding (1994–96) Robert Nouzaret (1996–98, 2002–04) Patrick Parizon (1999–2000) Gbonke Tia (2000–01) (2001) Henri Michel (2004–07) Gérard Gili (2008)
Vahid Halilhodžić (2008–10) (2010)
Sven-Göran Eriksson (2010) François Zahoui (2010–12) Sabri Lamouchi (2012–14) Hervé Renard (2014–15) Michel Dussuyer (2015–17)
Marc Wilmots (2017) Ibrahim Kamara (2018–20) Patrice Beaumelle (2020–22) Jean-Louis Gasset (2022–24) Emerse Faé (2024–)The following players were selected for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Gabon and Kenya on 7 and 11 June 2024, respectively.[6]
Caps and goals updated as of 11 June 2024, after the match against Kenya.[7]
The following players have also been called up to the squad within the last twelve months and are still eligible to represent.
Players in bold are still active with Ivory Coast.
| Rank | Player | Caps | Goals | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Didier Zokora | 123 | 1 | 2000–2014 |
| 2 | Kolo Touré | 120 | 7 | 2000–2015 |
| 3 | Max Gradel | 113 | 18 | 2011–2024 |
| 4 | Didier Drogba | 105 | 65 | 2002–2014 |
| 5 | Yaya Touré | 101 | 19 | 2004–2015 |
| 6 | Siaka Tiéné | 100 | 2 | 2000–2015 |
| 7 | Salomon Kalou | 96 | 27 | 2007–2017 |
| 8 | Serge Aurier | 93 | 4 | 2013–present |
| 9 | 90 | 49 | 1984–1996 | |
| 10 | Arthur Boka | 88 | 1 | 2004–2015 |
| Rank | Player | Goals | Caps | Ratio | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Didier Drogba (list) | 65 | 105 | ||
| 2 | Abdoulaye Traoré | 49 | 90 | 1984–1996 | |
| 3 | Djohan Tiéhi | 28 | 50 | 1985–1999 | |
| 4 | Salomon Kalou | 27 | 96 | 2007–2017 | |
| 5 | Gervinho | 23 | 86 | 2007–2021 | |
| 6 | 22 | 39 | 1996–2002 | ||
| 7 | Laurent Pokou | 21 | 30 | 1967–1980 | |
| 8 | Yaya Touré | 19 | 101 | 2004–2015 | |
| 9 | Aruna Dindane | 18 | 62 | 2000–2010 | |
| Max Gradel | 18 | 113 | 2011–2024 | ||
See also: Ivory Coast at the FIFA World Cup.
| FIFA World Cup record | Qualification record | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Squad | |||||||||||||||
| 1930 to 1958 | Part of | Part of | ||||||||||||||||
 1962 | Not a FIFA member | Not a FIFA member | ||||||||||||||||
| 1966 and 1970 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||||
| 1974 | Did not qualify | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 7 | |||||||||||
| 1978 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 10 | ||||||||||||
 1982 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||||
 1986 | Did not qualify | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 5 | |||||||||||
 1990 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 1 | ||||||||||||
 1994 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 12 | 6 | ||||||||||||
| 1998 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||||||||||
 2002 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 22 | 10 | ||||||||||||
 2006 | Group stage | 19th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 6 | Squad | 10 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 20 | 7 | |||
 2010 | 17th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | Squad | 12 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 29 | 6 | ||||
| 2014 | 21st | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | Squad | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 7 | ||||
| 2018 | Did not qualify | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 5 | |||||||||||
 2022 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 3 | ||||||||||||
 2026 | To be determined | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0 | |||||||||||
| To be determined | ||||||||||||||||||
 2034 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 9 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 14 | − | 90 | 48 | 27 | 15 | 167 | 72 | |||||
| Africa Cup of Nations record | Africa Cup of Nations qualification | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | |||||||||||||||
 1957 | Part of | Part of | |||||||||||||||
| 1959 | |||||||||||||||||
 1962 | Not affiliated to CAF | Not affiliated to CAF | |||||||||||||||
 1963 | |||||||||||||||||
 1965 | Third place | 3rd | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 4 | |||
| 1968 | Third place | 3rd | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | |||
| 1970 | Fourth place | 4th | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |||
 1972 | Did not qualify | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 5 | ||||||||||
 1974 | Group stage | 7th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 5 | |||
| 1976 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||
| 1978 | Banned | Banned | |||||||||||||||
 1980 | Group stage | 6th | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | |||
 1982 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||||
| 1984 | Group stage | 5th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | Qualified as hosts | ||||||||
| 1986 | Third place | 3rd | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 1 | |||
 1988 | Group stage | 6th | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | |||
 1990 | 6th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 3 | ||||
 1992 | Champions | 1st | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 3 | |||
| 1994 | Third place | 3rd | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 5 | Qualified as defending champions | ||||||||
| 1996 | Group stage | 11th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | |||
 1998 | Quarter-finals | 7th | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 8 | |||
| 2000 | Group stage | 9th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 2 | |||
 2002 | 16th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 4 | ||||
| 2004 | Did not qualify | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 3 | ||||||||||
| 2006 | Runners-up | 2nd | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 20 | 7 | |||
| 2008 | Fourth place | 4th | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |||
 2010 | Quarter-finals | 8th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 29 | 6 | |||
  2012 | Runners-up | 2nd | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 5 | |||
| Quarter-finals | 5th | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | ||||
| 2015 | Champions | 1st | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 11 | |||
| 2017 | Group stage | 11th | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | |||
| 2019 | Quarter-finals | 5th | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 5 | |||
| 2021 | Round of 16 | 10th | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 5 | |||
| 2023 | Champions | 1st | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 5 | |||
| 2025 | To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||||
  2027 | |||||||||||||||||
| Total | 3 Titles | 25/34 | 106 | 48 | 30 | 28 | 152 | 111 | 134 | 92 | 33 | 16 | 260 | 96 | |||
| African Nations Championship record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appearances: 5 | |||||||||
| Year | Round | Position | |||||||
| Group stage | 8th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 2011 | Group stage | 12th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| 2014 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
 2016 | Third place | 3rd | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 4 | |
| 2018 | Group stage | 14th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | |
| 2020 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2022 | Quarter-finals | 6th | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | |
| Total | Third place | 5/7 | 19 | 6 | 3 | 10 | 15 | 18 | |
| FIFA Confederations Cup record | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Squad | |||||||
| 1992 | Fourth place | 4th | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 9 | Squad | |
| 1995 to 2017 | Did not qualify | |||||||||
| Total | Fourth place | 1/10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 9 | – | |
See also: Ivory Coast national under-23 football team.
| African Games record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Rank | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
 1965 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1987 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 2/4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
See main article: CECAFA Cup.