Mozambique national football team
Encyclopedia
The Mozambique national football team (Portuguese: Moçambique equipa nacional de futebol), popularly known as Os Mambas, represents Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

 in association football and is controlled by the Federação Moçambicana de Futebol
Federação Moçambicana de Futebol
The Federação Moçambicana de Futebol is the governing body of football in Mozambique. It was founded in 1976, affiliated to FIFA in 1980 and to CAF in 1978. It organizes the national football league Moçambola and the national team.-External links:...

, the governing body for football in Mozambique
Football in Mozambique
The sport of football in the country of Mozambique is run by the Federação Moçambicana de Futebol. The association administers the national football team, as well as the national league....

. Mozambique have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...

, but they have qualified for four Africa Cup of Nations in 1986, 1996, 1998 and most recently the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...

, being eliminated in the first round in all four. Mozambique are currently ranked 106th in the FIFA World Rankings
FIFA World Rankings
The FIFA World Rankings is a ranking system for men's national teams in association football, currently led by Spain. The teams of the member nations of FIFA , football's world governing body, are ranked based on their game results with the most successful teams being ranked highest...

, with their highest ever ranking of 66th in November 1996.

Mozambique's home ground is Estádio do Zimpeto
Estádio do Zimpeto
Estádio do Zimpeto is a multi-use stadium in Zimpeto - an outlying neighborhood of Maputo, Mozambique, which was inaugurated on 23 April 2011 . It will be mainly used for football and will be the main stadium for the 2011 All-Africa Games. It will have a capacity of 42,000 spectators. The stadium...

 in the capital city Maputo
Maputo
Maputo, also known as Lourenço Marques, is the capital and largest city of Mozambique. It is known as the City of Acacias in reference to acacia trees commonly found along its avenues and the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. It was famous for the inscription "This is Portugal" on the walkway of its...

, and can hold 45,000 spectators. The team's current head coach is Mart Nooij
Mart Nooij
Martinus Ignatius "Mart" Nooij is a Dutch soccer manager.Nooij became a development trainer at the Royal Dutch Football Association. He worked for EVC 1913, in the United States and Kazakhstan and was manager of the Burkina Faso U-20 team at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship...

, who has been in charge since 2007.

First game

Mozambique played its first match against Tanzania
Tanzania national football team
The Tanzania national football team represents Tanzania in association football and is controlled by the Tanzania Football Federation, the governing body for football in Tanzania. Tanzania's home ground is Benjamin Mkapa national stadium in Dar-es-Salaam and their head coach is Jan Børge Poulsen....

 in 1977, losing the match 2–1. They first qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations in 1986, but were knocked out in the first round. Mozambique never qualified for another 10 years until 1996
1996 African Cup of Nations
-Group B:---------------------Group C:------------ withdrew, so their three matches were canceled.*vs. , January 16, 1996*vs. , January 19, 1996*vs...

. Again being knocked out in the first round of the tournament.

1986 African Nations Cup

Mozambique qualifed for its first Africa Cup of Nations in 1986
1986 African Cup of Nations
The 1986 African Cup of Nations was the 15th edition of the African Cup of Nations, the soccer championship of Africa . It was hosted by Egypt. Just like in 1984, the field of eight teams was split into two groups of four...

, held in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

, beating Mauritius
Mauritius national football team
The Mauritius national football team, nicknamed Club M, is the national team of Mauritius and is controlled by the Mauritius Football Association.-Early years:...

 3–0 in the preliminary round. In the first round of qualifying, Mozambique played Malawi
Malawi national football team
The Malawi national football team, nicknamed The Flames, is the national team of Malawi and is controlled by the Football Association of Malawi. Before 1966 they were known as the Nyasaland national football team...

, drawing both legs of the match, they eventually won 6–5 on penalties. In the second round of qualifying they played Libya
Libya national football team
The Libya national football team is the national association football team of Libya and is controlled by the Libyan Football Federation. The team has never qualified for the senior FIFA World Cup. They have qualified for three Africa Cup of Nations, one in 1982 where they finished runners-up and...

, losing the first leg 2–1. They won the second leg 2–1 and then went on to win the match 4–3 on penalties, Qualifying for the tournament.

Mozambique were placed in Group A along with Senegal
Senegal national football team
The Senegal national football team, nicknamed the Lions of Teranga, is the national team of Senegal and is controlled by the Fédération Sénégalaise de Football...

, Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire national football team
The Côte d'Ivoire National Football Team or Ivory Coast National Football Team, nicknamed Les Éléphants , represents Côte d'Ivoire in international football and is controlled by the Fédération Ivoirienne de Football...

 and hosts Egypt. They lost all their games 3–0, 2–0 and 2–0, not scoring a single goal. Egypt went on to win the tournament on home soil.

1996 African Cup of Nations

Mozambique had to wait 10 years to qualufy for another Africa Cup of Nations, as they qualified for the 1996
1996 African Cup of Nations
-Group B:---------------------Group C:------------ withdrew, so their three matches were canceled.*vs. , January 16, 1996*vs. , January 19, 1996*vs...

 tournament in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

. They were placed in Group D along with Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire national football team
The Côte d'Ivoire National Football Team or Ivory Coast National Football Team, nicknamed Les Éléphants , represents Côte d'Ivoire in international football and is controlled by the Fédération Ivoirienne de Football...

, Ghana
Ghana national football team
The Ghana national football team, popularly known as the Black Stars, is the national association football team of Ghana and is controlled by the Ghana Football Association...

 and Tunisia
Tunisia national football team
The Tunisia national football team , nicknamed Les Aigles de Carthage , is the national team of Tunisia and is controlled by the Fédération Tunisienne de Football. They have qualified for four FIFA World Cups, the first one in 1978, but have yet to make it out of the first round...

. Mozambique played their first game against Tunisia in Port Elizabeth, drawing 1–1 with Tico-Tico
Tico-Tico
Manuel José Luís Bucuane , best known as Tico-Tico, is a Mozambican football striker who plays for Desportivo de Maputo in Mozambique.-Career:...

 scoring in the 4th minute. They then went on to lose 1–0 to Côte d'Ivoire and 2–0 to Ghana, thus eliminating them from the tournament.

1998 African Cup of Nations

Two years later, Mozambique qualified for their third Africa Cup of Nations
1996 African Cup of Nations
-Group B:---------------------Group C:------------ withdrew, so their three matches were canceled.*vs. , January 16, 1996*vs. , January 19, 1996*vs...

 held in Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso – also known by its short-form name Burkina – is a landlocked country in west Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest.Its size is with an estimated...

. They were again placed in group D along with Morocco
Morocco national football team
The Morocco national football team , nicknamed أسود الأطلس , is the national team of Morocco and is managed by Eric Gerets. Winners of the African Nations Cup in 1976, they were the first African team to win a group at the World Cup, which they did in 1986, finishing ahead of Portugal, Poland, and...

, Egypt and Zambia
Zambia national football team
The Zambia national football team represents the country of Zambia in the sport of association football and is governed by the Football Association of Zambia. Before independence they were known as the Northern Rhodesia national football team. The side is nicknamed Chipolopolo as copper is one of...

. Mozambique lost their first game against eventual tournament winners Egypt 2–0, both goals coming from Hossam Hassan
Hossam Hassan
Hossam Hassan Hussein is a retired Egyptian footballer who played as a striker, and a current coach.A prolific goalscorer, he amassed well over 150 caps for Egypt, netting more than 50 times...

. In their second game they again lost to Morroco 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
2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (CAF)
The Confederation of African Football section of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification saw teams compete for five berths in the final tournament in South Africa...

 in the second round, and were placed in Group 7 with Botswana
Botswana national football team
The Botswana national football team, nicknamed 'The Zebras' is the national football team of Botswana and is controlled by the Botswana Football Association. They have never qualified for the World Cup but they have qualified for the 2012 African Nations Cup...

, Madagascar
Madagascar national football team
The Madagascar national football team, nicknamed Les Guerriers Zébus , is the national team of Madagascar and is controlled by the Fédération Malagasy de Football. It has never qualified for the finals of the World Cup or the African Nations Cup...

 and African football giants Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire national football team
The Côte d'Ivoire National Football Team or Ivory Coast National Football Team, nicknamed Les Éléphants , represents Côte d'Ivoire in international football and is controlled by the Fédération Ivoirienne de Football...

. They made a terrible start to qualifying, losing to Côte d'Ivoire 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
Antananarivo
Antananarivo , formerly Tananarive , is the capital and largest city in Madagascar. It is also known by its French colonial shorthand form Tana....

 with goals coming from Tico-Tico
Tico-Tico
Manuel José Luís Bucuane , best known as Tico-Tico, is a Mozambican football striker who plays for Desportivo de Maputo in Mozambique.-Career:...

, Carlitos
Carlos Chimomole
Carlos Bernardo "Carlitos" Chimomole is a Mozambican footballer who currently plays for Liga Muçulmana de Maputo and Mozambique. His position is midfielder.-Clubs:*2004-2007: Desportivo de Maputo*2007-2008: Supersport United...

 and Domingues
Domingues (Mozambican footballer)
Elias Gaspar "Domingues" Pelembe is a Mozambican footballer who currently plays for Mamelodi Sundowns in the South African Premier Soccer League and Mozambique...

. They then drew 1–1 with Côte d'Ivoire and beat Botswana 1–0 in Gaborone
Gaborone
' is the capital and largest city of Botswana with a population of 191,776 based on a 2006 survey, about 10% of the total population of Botswana....

 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
Nigeria national football team
The Nigeria national football team, nicknamed the Super Eagles or Green Eagles, is the national team of Nigeria and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation . The team has ranked as high as 5th in the FIFA World Rankings, in April 1994...

, Tunisia
Tunisia national football team
The Tunisia national football team , nicknamed Les Aigles de Carthage , is the national team of Tunisia and is controlled by the Fédération Tunisienne de Football. They have qualified for four FIFA World Cups, the first one in 1978, but have yet to make it out of the first round...

 and Kenya
Kenya national football team
The Kenya national football team, nicknamed the Harambee Stars, is the national team of Kenya and is controlled by Football Kenya Limited, the governing body of football in Kenya. They have never qualified for the World Cup finals.-History:...

. They went on to draw their first game against giants Nigeria 0–0 in Maputo
Maputo
Maputo, also known as Lourenço Marques, is the capital and largest city of Mozambique. It is known as the City of Acacias in reference to acacia trees commonly found along its avenues and the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. It was famous for the inscription "This is Portugal" on the walkway of its...

. 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
Tico-Tico
Manuel José Luís Bucuane , best known as Tico-Tico, is a Mozambican football striker who plays for Desportivo de Maputo in Mozambique.-Career:...

 scoring, but then a loss to Nigeria eliminated them from qualifying. In the last game they beat Tunisia 1–0 in a surprising victory that stopped Tunisia from qualifying. Despite not qualifying for the World Cup they still qualified for the 2010 African Cup of Nations
2010 African Cup of Nations
The 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 27th Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial football championship of Africa...

 in Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...

.

2010 African Cup of Nations

After a 12 year absence from African Cup of Nations
African Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations, also referred to as the African Cup of Nations or African Nations Cup, officially CAN , is the main international association football competition in Africa. It is sanctioned by the Confederation of African Football , and was first held in 1957. Since 1968, it has been...

 football, Mozambique were placed in Group C with Egypt, Nigeria
Nigeria national football team
The Nigeria national football team, nicknamed the Super Eagles or Green Eagles, is the national team of Nigeria and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation . The team has ranked as high as 5th in the FIFA World Rankings, in April 1994...

 and Benin
Benin national football team
The Benin national football team, nicknamed Les Écureuils , is the national football team of Benin and is controlled by the Fédération Béninoise de Football. They were known as the Dahomey national football team until 1975, when Dahomey became Benin. They have never made the World Cup but have...

. In their first game, they played Benin Benguela
Benguela
Benguela is a city in western Angola, south of Luanda, and capital of Benguela Province. It lies on a bay of the same name, in 12° 33’ S., 13° 25’ E...

 drawing 2–2 after being 2–0 down, with goals coming from Miro
Almiro Lobo
Daniel Almiro Lobo, better known as Miro is a Mozambican football defender who currently plays for South African Premier Soccer League club Platinum Stars and Mozambique.-External links:***...

 and Fumo
Carlos Fumo Gonçalves
Carlos Fumo Gonçalves , known as Fumo, is a Mozambican footballer who plays for Akritas Chlorakas in Cyprus, as a forward.-External links:**...

. 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
Tico-Tico
Manuel José Luís Bucuane , best known as Tico-Tico, is a Mozambican football striker who plays for Desportivo de Maputo in Mozambique.-Career:...

 retired from international football.

2012 African Cup of Nations

Mozambique were drawn in Group C for 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying along with Libya
Libya national football team
The Libya national football team is the national association football team of Libya and is controlled by the Libyan Football Federation. The team has never qualified for the senior FIFA World Cup. They have qualified for three Africa Cup of Nations, one in 1982 where they finished runners-up and...

, Zambia
Zambia national football team
The Zambia national football team represents the country of Zambia in the sport of association football and is governed by the Football Association of Zambia. Before independence they were known as the Northern Rhodesia national football team. The side is nicknamed Chipolopolo as copper is one of...

 and Comoros
Comoros national football team
The Comoros national football team is the national football team of Comoros, which is controlled by the Fédération Comorienne de Football. It was formed in 1979, joined the Confederation of African Football in 2003, and became a FIFA member in 2005....

. They drew 0–0 with Libya in their first game, then going on to beat Comoros 1–0. But, then a 2–0 and 3–0 loss to Zambia meams The Black Mambas are unlikely to qualify.
Team
4 3 0 1 9 1
8
9
4 2 2 0 5 1
4
8
4 1 1 2 1 5 −4 4
4 0 1 3 1 9 −8 1

World Cup record

Year Round Position GP W D L GS GA
1930
1930 FIFA World Cup
The 1930 FIFA World Cup was the inaugural FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in Uruguay from 13 July to 30 July 1930...

 to 1978
1978 FIFA World Cup
The 1978 FIFA World Cup, the 11th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Argentina between 1 June and 25 June. The 1978 World Cup was won by Argentina who beat the Netherlands 3–1 after extra time in the final. This win was the first World Cup title for Argentina, who became the fifth...

Did not enter
1982
1974 FIFA World Cup
The 1974 FIFA World Cup, the tenth staging of the World Cup, was held in West Germany from 13 June to 7 July. The tournament marked the first time that the current trophy, the FIFA World Cup Trophy, created by the Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga, was awarded...

Did not qualify
1986
1978 FIFA World Cup
The 1978 FIFA World Cup, the 11th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Argentina between 1 June and 25 June. The 1978 World Cup was won by Argentina who beat the Netherlands 3–1 after extra time in the final. This win was the first World Cup title for Argentina, who became the fifth...

Did not enter
1990
1986 FIFA World Cup
The 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so and officially...

Entry rejected
1994
1990 FIFA World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event twice. Teams representing 116 national football associations from all six populated...

 to 2010
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...

Did not qualify
Total 0/18 0 0 0 0 0 0

African Nations Cup record

African Cup of Nations
African Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations, also referred to as the African Cup of Nations or African Nations Cup, officially CAN , is the main international association football competition in Africa. It is sanctioned by the Confederation of African Football , and was first held in 1957. Since 1968, it has been...

Titles: 0
Appearances: 4
Year Position Year Position Year Position
 Sudan 1957 Did not enter  Ethiopia 1976 Did not enter  Tunisia 1994 Did not qualify
 Egypt 1959 Did not enter  Ghana 1978 Did not enter  South Africa 1996 Round 1
 Ethiopia 1962 Did not enter  Nigeria 1980 Did not enter  Burkina Faso 1998 Round 1
 Ghana 1963 Did not enter  Libya 1982 Did not qualify  Ghana Nigeria 2000 Did not qualify
 Tunisia 1965 Did not enter  Côte d'Ivoire 1984 Did not qualify  Mali 2002 Did not qualify
 Ethiopia 1968 Did not enter  Egypt 1986 Round 1  Tunisia 2004 Did not qualify
 Sudan 1970 Did not enter  Morocco 1988 Did not qualify  Egypt 2006 Did not qualify
 Cameroon 1972 Did not enter  Algeria 1990 Did not qualify  Ghana 2008
2008 African Cup of Nations
The 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the MTN Africa Cup of Nations due to the competition's sponsorship by MTN, was the 26th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial football tournament for nations affiliated to the Confederation of African Football . The tournament was staged at...

Did not qualify
 Egypt 1974 Did not enter  Senegal 1992 Did not qualify  Angola 2010
2010 African Cup of Nations
The 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 27th Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial football championship of Africa...

 
Round 1
|    2012  Did not qualify

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification game against Zambia
Zambia national football team
The Zambia national football team represents the country of Zambia in the sport of association football and is governed by the Football Association of Zambia. Before independence they were known as the Northern Rhodesia national football team. The side is nicknamed Chipolopolo as copper is one of...

 on 4 June 2011.

Caps and goals correct as of 22 July 2011.
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External links

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