Ivorian national soccer team / world championships

Ivory Coast
République de Côte d'Ivoire

World Cup record goalscorer:	Wilfried Bony , Aruna Dindane , Didier Drogba and Gervinho (2 each)
World Cup record players:	Yaya Touré (9 / all)
Rank :	45
Balance sheet
9 World Cup games 3 wins 1 draw 5 defeats 13:14 goals
statistics
First World Cup game Ivory Coast 1: 2 Argentina Hamburg ( DEU ); June 10, 2006
Biggest World Cup victory Ivory Coast 3-0 North Korea Nelspruit ( ZAF ); June 25, 2010
Biggest World Cup defeat Ivory Coast 1: 3 Brazil Johannesburg ( ZAF ); June 20, 2010
successes
World Championship
Participation in the finals	3 ( first : 2006 )
Best results	Preliminary round (2006, 2010, 2014)
Best placements in the countries that host the FIFA World Cup
(As of July 2018 )

The article contains a detailed description of the Ivorian national soccer team at soccer world championships . The Ivorian team took part in qualifying for the 1974 World Cup for the first time and has so far qualified for the World Cup three times.

Overview

year	Host country	Participation until ...	Last opponent	Result	Trainer	Comments and special features
1962	Chile	not participated				Not yet a FIFA member
1966	England	not participated
1970	Mexico	not participated
1974	Germany	not qualified				In the qualification in the 3rd round, Morocco failed, but they could not qualify either.
1978	Argentina	not qualified				In the qualification in the third round, Nigeria failed, but they could not qualify either.
1982	Spain	not participated
1986	Mexico	not qualified				In the qualification in the quarterfinals of Ghana failed, but that could not qualify well.
1990	Italy	not qualified				In the qualification in the second round, Algeria failed, but they could not qualify either.
1994	United States	not qualified				In the qualification in the second round, Nigeria failed again.
1998	France	not qualified				The Republic of the Congo failed again in qualification in the first round , but they also failed to qualify.
2002	South Korea / Japan	not qualified				In the qualification in the second round of Tunisia failed.
2006	Germany	Preliminary round	Argentina , Netherlands , Serbia and Montenegro	19th	Henri Michel	After defeats against Argentina and the Netherlands and a win against Serbia and Montenegro, eliminated in third place in the group.
2010	South Africa	Preliminary round	Portugal , Brazil , North Korea	17th	Sven-Göran Eriksson	After a draw against Portugal, defeat against Brazil and victory against North Korea, they were eliminated as third in the group.
2014	Brazil	Preliminary round	Japan , Colombia , Greece	21st	Sabri Lamouchi	Preliminary round through a penalty goal in stoppage time .
2018	Russia	not qualified				In the qualifying failed to Morocco.
2022	Qatar

Statistics (data including 2018: 21 World Championships; percentages are rounded)

• Not participated (not an independent state or not recognized): 10 × (48%; 1930 to 1970 and 1982)
• Unqualified: 8 × (38%; 1974, 1978, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2018)
• Athletic qualification: 3 × (14% or 27% of the attempts)
• Preliminary round: 3 × (14%; 2006, 2010 and 2014)

World Cup tournaments

1930 to 1970

The Ivory Coast was part of French West Africa from 1895 to 1960 , the Fédération Ivoirienne de Football was only founded in the year of independence and accepted into FIFA in 1964. Therefore, the Ivory Coast could not participate in the first world championships. The Ivorians could only have participated in qualifying for the 1966 World Cup, but did not do so until 1970.

1974 in Germany

The Ivory Coast took part in qualifying for the World Cup in the Federal Republic of Germany for the first time and met Sierra Leone on October 15, 1972 in the first round in Freetown in their first World Cup qualifier . The game was won 1-0 and the second leg in Abidjan was won 2-0. In the second round, the Ivorians beat Tunisia 1: 1 and 2: 1 , but failed in the third round to Morocco , which was also unable to qualify. A World Cup qualifier was lost for the first time at 1: 4 in Tétouan .

1978 in Argentina

In qualifying for the World Cup in Argentina , the Ivorians prevailed in the first round against Upper Volta and in the second round against the People's Republic of Congo . In the 3rd round Nigeria was stronger, but could not qualify afterwards either.

1982 in Spain

The Ivorians did not take part in qualifying for the World Cup in Spain.

1986 in Mexico

In qualifying for the second World Cup in Mexico , the Ivorians beat Gambia 4: 0 and 2: 3 in the first round , then failed in the second round against neighboring Ghana , who also failed to qualify.

1990 in Italy

To qualify for the second World Cup in Italy , the Ivorians only had to compete in the second round. As opponents were Algeria , Zimbabwe and Libya be drawn. After Libya lost 1-0 to Ivory Coast and 2-0 to Algeria, they withdrew. The two games were therefore not counted. In the following two games against Algeria and Zimbabwe, neither team managed to score. While the Ivorians then only won 5-0 against Zimbabwe, the Algerians won all games and reached the next round, in which they were eliminated against Egypt.

1994 in the United States

To qualify for the World Cup in the USA , the Ivorians were drawn into a group with Niger , Botswana and Sudan . Sudan waived and with two home wins and two goalless draws in the away games, the Ivorians reached the second round. In this, Nigeria and Algeria were the opponents. In the end, Nigeria and the Ivorians both had 5-3 points, but the Nigerians had the better goal difference, which meant they qualified for the World Cup for the first time.

1998 in France

The qualification for the second World Cup in France was even worse. Already in the first round came the end against the Republic of the Congo .

2002 in Japan and South Korea

In qualifying for the first World Cup in Asia, the Ivorians beat Rwanda 2-2 and 2-0 in the first round . In the second round, Tunisia , the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Republic of the Congo and Madagascar were the opponents. Behind Tunisia, the Ivorians finished second, although they only lost their last game against the Democratic Republic of the Congo. But too often they had shared the points.

2006 in Germany

Starting line-ups in the Ivorians' first World Cup game

The Ivory Coast was finally able to qualify for the second World Cup in Germany . After a bye in the first round, the team was drawn into a group with Cameroon , Egypt , Libya , Sudan and Benin in the second round . The Ivorians lost both games against Cameroon, but in the end they had one point more and were qualified for the World Cup. Cameroon gambled away with a 1-1 draw against Egypt on the last day of the match. Didier Drogba was the second best African scorer in qualifying with nine goals .

In Germany, the team was drawn into a so-called death group with ex-world champions Argentina , the Netherlands , Serbia and Montenegro . In the first World Cup game in their history, they lost 2-1 to Argentina. These meetings allowed Didier Drogba to the 1: 2 goal back in the closing stages of the first World Cup goal for the Ivorians. They also lost 2-1 to the Dutch and were eliminated early. After all, they managed their first World Cup victory against Serbia and Montenegro with a 3-2 deficit after a 2-0 deficit.

2010 in South Africa

The qualification for the first World Cup in Africa was also successfully completed. Mozambique , Madagascar and Botswana were the opponents in the second round . With three home wins and three draws in the away games, the Ivorians qualified for the third round. Here Burkina Faso , Malawi and Guinea were the opponents. The Ivorians won five games and only lost a point in the 1-1 draw in Malawi, which meant they were qualified for the World Cup.

In South Africa they were drawn into a death group again, this time with record world champions Brazil and Portugal , while North Korea , which was back for the first time since 1966, was only considered to be a point supplier. In the first game the Portuguese and Ivorians parted goalless, the only World Cup game of the Ivorians so far in which they have not scored a goal. They lost 3-1 to Brazil. The final 3-0 against North Korea was not enough to progress.

2014 in Brazil

Ivorian and Colombian fans watching both teams play

Scene from the game against Colombia (left: Alexander Mejía , right: Salomon Kalou )

The qualification for the second World Cup in Brazil was successful again. In the group stage Morocco , Tanzania and Gambia were the opponents. The playoffs were reached with four wins and two draws. The opponent was Senegal and after a 3-1 win in the first leg, a 1-1 draw in the second leg was enough for qualification.

In Brazil, the Ivorians apparently faced an easier group than in the two previous participations. Japan , Colombia and Greece were rated as weaker or at most equivalent. The first game against Japan was won 2-1, but against Colombia a 1-2 defeat followed. In the last game against Greece a draw would have been enough to reach the last 16. The Ivorians were able to equalize the Greek 1-0 lead, but in the third minute of stoppage time the Greeks received a penalty that they were able to convert to the happy 2-1. So the Ivorians were eliminated again in the preliminary round. After the World Cup, record scorer Didier Drogba ended his national team career .

2018 in Russia

In qualifying , the team only had to intervene in the second round, which took place in November 2015. Opponents were neighboring Liberia , who had won 3-1 in the first round after a 1-1 draw at home in Guinea-Bissau . Ivory Coast qualified with two wins for the third round, which was held between October 2016 and November 2017. Here Gabon, Morocco and Mali were the opponents. The Ivorians began the qualification under Michel Dussuyer , who took over as national coach in July 2015. In the first game Mali were defeated 3-1, but in the second game it was only enough for a goalless draw in Morocco. After the Ivorians were eliminated in the preliminary round at the Africa Cup of 2017 , Dussuyer resigned. He was succeeded in March 2017 by Marc Wilmots , who resigned as Belgian national coach after the 2016 European Championship . Before the last game against Morocco, the Ivorians were one point behind Morocco in second place and needed a win in their home game against the Moroccans to reach the finals. The final round was missed because of the 2-0 home defeat.

player

Ranking of the Ivorian World Cup players with the most appearances

Yaya Touré , the Ivorian World Cup record player, has played in all previous World Cup games of the Ivorians

01. Yaya Touré - 9 appearances in 3 tournaments

02. Didier Drogba , Didier Zokora - 8 appearances in 3 tournaments

04. Boubacar Barry , Arthur Boka - 7 appearances in 3 tournaments

06. Aruna Dindane , Emmanuel Eboué , Gervinho , Salomon Kalou , Cheik Tioté and Kolo Touré - 6 appearances in 2 tournaments

12. Abdul Kader Keïta - 5 appearances in 2 tournaments

Ranking of the Ivorian World Cup players with the most goals

01. Wilfried Bony , Aruna Dindane, Didier Drogba and Gervinho - 2 goals each

World Cup captains

• 2006: Didier Drogba (1st and 2nd game), Cyril Domoraud (3rd game because Drogba was banned)
• 2010: Kolo Touré (1st game), Didier Drogba (2nd and 3rd game)
• 2014: Yaya Touré (1st and 2nd game), Didier Drogba (3rd game)

Note: Didier Drogba is the only African player to have been the captain of 3 World Cup tournaments.

Players banned from World Championships

• 2006: Didier Drogba received the second yellow card in the game against the Netherlands and was suspended for the last group game. In stoppage time of the last group game, Cyrille Domoraud received the yellow-red card . With Ivory Coast eliminated, the card had no further effect.
• 2014: Didier Zokora received the second yellow card in the second group game against Colombia and was suspended for the last game against Greece.

Share of players playing abroad in the World Cup squad

The Ivorians mostly nominated players who play abroad, initially primarily in the former colonial power France, and in 2014 with substitute goalkeeper Sylvain Gbohouo for the first time a player playing in the Ivory Coast who was not used.

Year (games)	Number (countries)	Players (stakes)
2006 (3)	23 (1 in Belgium, 1 in Germany, 3 in England, 13 in France, 1 in Greece, 1 in Italy, 1 in the Netherlands, 1 in Switzerland, 1 in Turkey)	Boubacar Barry (1); Guy Demel (0); Didier Drogba (2), Emmanuel Eboué (3), Kolo Touré (3); Kanga Akalé (3), Arthur Boka (3), Aruna Dindane (3), Cyril Domoraud (1), Emerse Faé (0), Gérard Gnanhouan (0), Abdul Kader Keïta (2), Bonaventure Kalou (2), Bakari Koné (3), Blaise Kouassi (1), Abdoulaye Méïté (2), Romaric (1), Didier Zokora (3); Yaya Touré (3); Marco Zoro (0); Arouna Koné (3); Gilles Yapi Yapo (1); Jean-Jacques Tizié (2)
2010 (3)	23 (1 in Belgium, 2 in Germany, 6 in England, 4 in France, 1 in Ireland, 1 in Israel, 1 in the Netherlands, 1 in Romania, 1 in Scotland, 1 in Switzerland, 3 in Spain, 1 in Turkey)	Boubacar Barry (3); Arthur Boka (2), Guy Demel (2); Aruna Dindane (3), Didier Drogba (3), Emmanuel Eboué (3), Steve Gohouri (0), Salomon Kalou (3), Kolo Touré (3); Benjamin Angoua (0), Jean-Jacques Gosso (0), Siaka Tiéné (2), Gervinho (3); Daniel Yéboah (0); Aristide Zogbo (0); Cheik Tioté (3); Emmanuel Koné (0); Souleymane Bamba (0); Seydou Doumbia (1); Romaric (3), Yaya Touré (3), Didier Zokora (3); Abdul Kader Keïta (3)
2014 (3)	22 (1 in Belgium, 4 in Germany, 4 in England, 5 in France, 1 in Italy, 1 in Norway, 2 in Switzerland, 4 in Turkey)	Boubacar Barry (3); Arthur Boka (3), Mathis Bolly (1), Constant Djakpa (1), Didier Ya Konan (1); Wilfried Bony (3), Cheik Tioté (3), Kolo Touré (3), Yaya Touré (3); Jean-Daniel Akpa-Akpro (0), Serge Aurier (3), Ismaël Diomandé (1), Max Gradel (1), Salomon Kalou (3); Gervinho (3); Sayouba Mandé (0); Serey Die (3), Giovanni Sio (1); Souleymane Bamba (3), Didier Drogba (3), Diarrassouba Viera (0), Didier Zokora (2)

Games

The Ivorians have played 9 World Cup games so far, three of which have been won, five have been lost and one has ended in a draw. The Ivorians never met the host, defending champion or later world champion and only once met a newcomer (Serbia & Montenegro), who was the successor to another (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia). All previous World Cup games are unique.

All World Cup games
No.	date	Result	opponent	venue		occasion	comment
1	06/10/2006	1: 2	Argentina	Hamburg ( DEU )	*	Preliminary round
2	06/16/2006	1: 2	Netherlands	Stuttgart ( DEU )	*	Preliminary round	First international match against the Netherlands
3	06/21/2006	3: 2	Serbia and Montenegro	Munich ( DEU )	*	Preliminary round	Only international match against Serbia and Montenegro, last international match for Serbia and Montenegro
4th	06/15/2010	0-0	Portugal	Nelson Mandela Bay / Port Elizabeth ( ZAF )	*	Preliminary round	First international match against Portugal
5	06/20/2010	1: 3	Brazil	Johannesburg ( ZAF )	*	Preliminary round	First international match against Brazil
6th	06/25/2010	3-0	North Korea	Nelspruit ( ZAF )	*	Preliminary round	First international match against North Korea
7th	06/14/2014	2: 1	Japan	Recife ( BRA )	*	Preliminary round	First international match in South America
8th	06/19/2014	1: 2	Colombia	Brasília ( BRA )	*	Preliminary round	First international match against Colombia
9	06/24/2014	1: 2	Greece	Fortaleza ( BRA )	*	Preliminary round	First international match against Greece, 104th and last international match by record goalscorer Didier Drogba

Highest victories and defeats

The Ivorian team achieved their highest victories against the following teams in World Cup tournaments:

•  North Korea : Preliminary round 2010 - 3-0 (only game against North Korea)
•  Serbia and Montenegro : Preliminary round 2006 - 3-2 (only game against Serbia & Montenegro)

The Ivorian team suffered their biggest defeats against the following teams at World Cup tournaments:

•  Brazil : Preliminary round 2010 - 1: 3 (only game against Brazil)
•  Greece : Preliminary round 2014 - 1: 2 (only game against Greece)
•  Colombia : Preliminary round 2014 - 1: 2 (only game against Colombia)

See also

Ivorian Women's National Football Team / World Championships

Web links

• fifa.com: Ivory Coast

References and footnotes

1. ↑ The placements from 5th place onwards were determined by FIFA without any placement games. See: All-time FIFA World Cup Ranking 1930-2014 (PDF; 200 kB)
2. ↑ Incl. a player who plays for a Welsh club in the English Premier League.