The 1980 African Cup of Nations was the 12th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the football championship of Africa (CAF). It was hosted by Nigeria. Just like in 1978, the field of eight teams was split into two groups of four. Nigeria won its first championship, beating Algeria in the final 3−0.
Qualified teams
The 8 qualified teams are:
| Team | Qualified as | Qualified on | Previous appearances in tournament[a] |
|---|---|---|---|
 Nigeria |
Hosts | 3 (1963, 1976, 1978) | |
 Ghana |
Holders | 16 March 1978 | 5 (1963, 1965, 1968, 1970, 1978) |
 Ivory Coast |
2nd round winners | 6 July 1979 | 4 (1965, 1968, 1970, 1974) |
 Morocco |
2nd round winners | 6 July 1979 | 3 (1972, 1976, 1978) |
 Algeria |
2nd round winners | 8 July 1979 | 1 (1968) |
 Egypt |
2nd round winners | 13 July 1979 | 7 (1957, 1959, 1962, 1963, 1970, 1974, 1976) |
 Guinea |
2nd round winners | 19 August 1979 | 3 (1970, 1974, 1976) |
 Tanzania |
2nd round winners | 26 August 1979 | 0 (debut) |
- Notes
- ^ Bold indicates champion for that year, Italic indicates host.
Squads
Venues
The competition was played in two venues in Lagos and Ibadan.
| Lagos | |
|---|---|
| Surulere Stadium | |
| Capacity: 80,000 | |
| |
| Ibadan | |
| Liberty Stadium | |
| Capacity: 35,000 | |
|
Group stage
Tiebreakers
If two or more teams finished level on points after completion of the group matches, the following tie-breakers were used to determine the final ranking:
- Goal difference in all group matches
- Greater number of goals scored in all group matches
- Drawing of lots
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nigeria (H)
|
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 5 | Advance to Knockout stage |
| 2 | Egypt
|
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 4 | |
| 3 | Ivory Coast
|
3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 2 | |
| 4 | Tanzania
|
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 1 |
| Nigeria | 0–0 | Ivory Coast |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
| Ivory Coast | 1–1 | Tanzania |
|---|---|---|
Koma  7' |
Report | Waziri 59' |
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Algeria
|
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 5 | Advance to Knockout stage |
| 2 | Morocco
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | |
| 3 | Ghana
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | |
| 4 | Guinea
|
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −2 | 1 |
Knockout stage
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 19 March – Lagos | ||||||
| Nigeria | 1 | |||||
| 22 March – Lagos | ||||||
| Morocco | 0 | |||||
| Nigeria | 3 | |||||
| 19 March – Ibadan | ||||||
| Algeria | 0 | |||||
| Algeria (pen.) | 2 (4) | |||||
| Egypt | 2 (2) | |||||
| Third place | ||||||
| 21 March – Lagos | ||||||
| Morocco | 2 | |||||
| Egypt | 0 | |||||
Semi-finals
| Algeria | 2–2 | Egypt |
|---|---|---|
| Assad 55' (pen.) Benmiloudi 62' |
Report | El Khatib 32' El Sayed 47' |
| Penalties | ||
Belloumi  Fergani Khedis Larbès  Assad |
4–2 | Shehata Mokhtar El Khatib Amer |
Third place match
Final
CAF Team of the Tournament
| Goalkeepers | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Goalscorers
There were 33 goals scored in 16 matches, for an average of 2.06 goals per match.
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
External links
| Editions |
|
|---|---|
| Qualification | |
| Finals | |
| Bids | |
| Squads | |
| Statistics | |
| Miscellaneous | |
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