The Angola national football team (Portuguese: Seleção nacional de futebol de Angola, Umbundu: Ocimunga colombola viombanjele yo Ngola) represents Angola in men's international football and is controlled by the Angolan Football Federation and nicknamed as both Palancas Negras (Black Sable antelopes) and Diabos Vermelhos (Red Devils), the team is a member of both FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
Angola reached its highest FIFA ranking of 45th in July 2000. Their greatest accomplishment was qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, their only World Cup to date.
Contents
History
Angola played their first game against Congo on 8 February 1976, losing 3–2 with goals from Giovetty and Nelson. On 26 June 1977, Cuba became Angola's first non-African opponent when the two countries met in Angola, with Angola winning 1–0. Angola entered World Cup qualifying for the first time in the 1986 qualifying competition. Angola defeated Senegal on penalties in the first round before narrowly losing to Algeria 3–2 on aggregate in the second round. That generation included great players of the nation's history like Jesus, Ndunguidi, Joseph Maluka, Alves, Vata and others.
Angola qualified for their first Africa Cup of Nations in 1996. They were drawn in Group A with South Africa, Egypt and Cameroon. They lost their first two games to Egypt and South Africa, but managed a 3–3 draw against Cameroon. They finished bottom of the group and did not reach the second round. Angola then qualified for their second successive African Cup of Nations in 1998, but again failed to reach the second round, drawing 0–0 with South Africa and 3–3 with Namibia, and losing 5–2 to Ivory Coast. Also in this generation, there were great players: Paulão, Quinzinho (who scored the first goal in the AFCON and played in FC Porto) and Joni. This national team was coached by Carlos Alhinho, who gave opportunities to young players, thus forming Angola's golden generation.
After missing the last 3 tournaments to the AFCON of 2000, 2002 and 2004, they qualified for the 2006 African Nations Cup. They recorded their first African Cup of Nations 3-2 win against Togo, two goals coming from Flávio and the other coming from Maurito. They also drew 0–0 against Congo DR and lost 3–1 against Cameroon. Angola's best performance then came in the 2008 African Nations Cup. They were drawn in Group D with Tunisia, South Africa and Senegal. They drew 1–1 and 0–0 with South Africa and Tunisia, then defeated Senegal 3–1, two goals coming from Manucho. In the quarter-finals they were beaten by event champions Egypt 2–1; Manucho scored again, finishing with four tournament goals in total.
Angola also won the COSAFA Cup in 1999, 2001 and 2004.
2006 FIFA World Cup
The Angola national team's journey to the World Cup began in CAF preliminary rounds in an unsuccessful duel with Chad. Angola was in FIFA rankings 70 places higher but lost 3-1 to Chad, following a hat-trick by Francis Oumar (the only goals he ever scored for the national team). However, in the second leg at the Cidadela stadium Angola won 2-0, advancing on the away goals rule (3-3 on aggregate) the team played the first match under Ismael Kurtz but he was dismissed and replaced by Oliveira Gonçalves. The FAF's goal was not the World Cup but rather the AFCON, as the qualification process were for both the same. Angola was placed in group with Nigeria, Algeria, Gabon, Rwanda and Zimbabwe. The qualifiers began on June 5, 2004, with a 0-0 draw away to Algeria. In the second match, Akwá scored in the 84th minute to secure a victory over Nigeria. In the third round, Angola drew 2-2 in Libreville against Gabon, but back at the Cidadela, they defeated Rwanda with a goal from Freddy. In October of that same year, Angola beat Zimbabwe with a goal by Flávio; their first defeat came shortly after, losing 2-0 in Harare. Back at the Cidadela, Angola defeated Algeria 2-1 with goals from the duo Flávio and Akwá. The next match took place in Kano, Nigeria; Angola was losing, but Paulo Figueiredo (born in Angola to Portuguese parents) equalized. This draw left Angola and Nigeria tied at the top of group but Angola held the advantage through tye head-to-head record. With two games remaining, Angola beat Gabon 3-0 at home, even though Nigeria defeated Algeria 5-2. In the final match round, 8 October in 2005, Angola raced Rwanda in Kigali. While Nigeria was beating Zimbabwe 5-1, the "hero fo kigali" appeared in 79th minutes following a cross from Zé Kalanga, Akwá headed the ball in, qualifying Angola for its first World Cup appearance. In total, Angola scored 12 goals and conceded 6, with Akwá finishing as the top scorer with 5 goals.
When picking the squad, Gonçalves sought advice from José Mourinho because his Angolan wife would have insight into players like Akwá, João Ricardo, Paulo Figueiredo, Flávio Amado, and Jamba. Angola played six warm-up games against South Korea, Mauritius, Lesotho, Argentina, Turkey and USA.
Angola played their first World Cup finals game against the Portuguese side (Ronaldo's first world cup match), who won the match 1–0, the only goal coming from Pauleta. There was a very friendly environment in and around the stadium during this match because of the links and friendship between the countries of Angola and Portugal. Angola drew 0–0 in their second game with Mexico with a great performance from João Ricardo (goalkeeper, also of Portuguese descent, and curiously conceded Cristiano Ronaldo's first career goal) he was named man of the match. Although he was the only unemployed player in the tournament, he was helping Angola as still had a chance of qualifying, but the match finished 1–1 after goals by Flávio and Sohrab Bakhtiarizadeh. Angola were eliminated from the tournament only losing one game and 11 cards in 3 Matches.
2010 World Cup failure
After the 2006 World Cup, many of Angola's most experienced players such as Akwá and João Ricardo retired from the international game, but the expectation remained high for the team to qualify for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. The team had a bye through the first round of qualification and in the second round they were drawn in Group 3 along with Benin, Uganda and Niger. Despite winning their first two matches, Angola failed to proceed to the third round, missing out by two points.
2010 Africa Cup of Nations
As hosts of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, Angola were seeded in Group A along with Mali, Algeria, and Malawi. Coached by Manuel José, in their first game they drew 4–4 with Mali, after letting a 4–0 lead slip in the last 11 minutes (including three goals in stoppage time) and so, it became known and nicknamed "selection of almost" in Angola. They recovered from this by beating Malawi 2–0 in the second match, and topped the group by drawing 0–0 with Algeria. Were knocked out in the quarter final after a 1–0, defeat by eventual finalists Ghana.
Failure in AFCON 2012 and 2013
After 2010, Angola came from a brilliant debut in the 2011 African Nations Championship with a silver medal and was the third team to qualify after the hosts (Equatorial Guinea and Gabon). With the core of the 2006 team and new coach Lito Vidigal, Angola featured Flávio, Kali, Gilberto, Love and Mateus, and the new generation included Djalma, Amaro, Dani Massunguna and Manucho, the latter having gone to Manchester United and playing for Valladolid at the time, having already played in the 2008 and 2010 Africa Cup of Nations. Angola was in Group-B with Burkina Faso, Sudan and Ivory Coast. In first round, with goals from Mateus and Manucho, Angola won the 2-1 against Burkina Faso. In the second game, Manucho scored 2, but Mohamed Ahmed Bashir also scored 2. The last game against pre-qualified Ivory Coast, Angola lost 2-0, but even though they were tied on points, they lost difference, with Sudan, and were eliminated. After this tournament, players like Flávio, Kali and André Macanga.
Angola returned to the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013 in South Africa (which would now be held in odd-numbered years) and played in Group-A with the host nation, Morocco and Cape Verde. Although it was not their golden generation, good players remained like goalkeeper Lamá, Manucho and Mateus Galiano. Further strength came from selections of the next generation: Neblú (a 19-year-old goalkeeper) Bastos. The first game ended in a 0-0 draw with Morocco. The second game ended in a 2-0 victory against South Africa, In the final round, Cape Verde opened the scoring with a goal by Nando, but Fernando Varela equalized. Héldon in the 91st minute to qualify Cape Verde for the next phase. Angola was eliminated from the next phase when Morocco finished with 3 points and the Blue Sharks with 5.
Decline and return
During the next two years, Angola failed to qualify for the 2014 World Cup, was eliminated by Lesotho (3-5 on penalties) in the COSAFA Cup, failed to qualify for the 2014 CHAN, and failed to qualify for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, ending their run in five consecutive Africa Cups. On May 13, 2015, Gelson Dala, a young player from Primeiro de Agosto, made his debut for the national team, scoring twice in Tundavala against the Central African Republic in a qualifying match for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations. The game ended 4-0 and Angola failed to qualify.
Angola experienced a hiatus from a continental tournament until 2015 when Angola qualified for the 2016 CHAN in Rwanda against South Africa. Gelson Dala and Ary Papel (both from Primeiro de Agosto) stood out, although Angola was eliminated from the 2018 World Cup by South Africa.
In the CHAN tournament, Angola performed poorly, finishing 3rd in their group with 1 win (against Ethiopia, 2-1, with a brace from Ary Papel) and 2 losses (4-2 against DRC and 1-0 against Cameroon), failing to advance to the next phase. The good news is that there was the 2018 CHAN tournament, which Angola managed to qualify for, with Dany Massunguna scoring his first and only goal for the national team against Madagascar. Returning to the COSAFA Cup, Angola fell in the group stage with only one goal scored, despite finishing 2nd in their group. There was also the qualification for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, where Angola debuted with a defeat (3-1) away to Burkina Faso. Qualification for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations was paused for a year and a few months due to the 2018 World Cup.
In the 2018 CHAN tournament in Morocco, Angola drew 0-0 with Burkina Faso in their opening match but won 1-0 against Cameroon with a penalty goal by Job in the 30th minute. In the final round, Angola drew with Congo, who topped the group with 7 points, and with only one goal scored, Angola advanced from the group stage in second place. In the quarter-finals, Angola faced Nigeria, and the Palancas Negras opened the scoring with a goal from Félix Vá, but the nickname "the almost team" emerged. In the 90+2 minute, Okpotu equalized, taking the game to extra time, and in the 109th minute, Okechukwu scored, eliminating Angola from the CHAN.
After the disastrous defeat in the CHAN, Angola was eliminated in the group stage of the 2018 COSAFA Cup, again finishing 2nd in the group with 4 points. On September 9, 2018, Angola returned to qualifying for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, with a 1-0 victory at home against Botswana, led by Gelson Dala. A month later (at the 11 de Novembro Stadium), Angola thrashed Mauritania 4-1, with Mateus Galiano (the only player from the 2006 generation to score a brace as captain (scoring 2 years after his last goal), Djalma and Gelson scored the remaining goals in a game in Angola. Angola started losing, including the next game that Angola lost to Mauritania (1-0). In the 5th and penultimate round, in a direct confrontation against Burkina Faso (where if Angola lost, they would be out of the African Cup), at the 11 de Novembro stadium, the Angolans filled the stadium. Three minutes in, Burkina Faso hit the post, but at 45+1 Gelson Dala gave a back pass and Mateus Galiano scored, and in the second half, as in the first, Gelson passed and Mateus scored his second goal, Burkina Faso even reduced the deficit through Dayo in the 68th minute, but that's how it ended. In the last game in Botswana, Angola only needed a win to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations on March 22, 2018. A player born in Portugal but of Angolan descent, Wilson Eduardo, made his debut for the Angolan national team, and in the 21st minute, Herenilson passed type as Iniesta, Fredy put the ball in the middle, and Igor Vetokele error but on missed, Wilson Eduardo was there to score on the rebound. Several shots from Botswana didn't go in because of Tony Cabaça, and the referee blew the whistle, and Angola was in the Africa Cup of Nations 6 years later. The players hugged, cried, etc. Angola finished first with the same 12 points as Mauritania, who were making their debut.
Kit history
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
Win
Draw
Loss
Fixture
Coaching staff
Players
Current squad
The following players were selected for the friendly matches against Mauritania and Central African Republic on 5 and 9 June 2026 respectively.
Caps and goals as of 9 June 2026, after the match against Central African Republic.
Recent call-ups
The following players have also been called up to the Angola squad within the last 12 months and are still available for selection.
Records
As of 9 June 2026
Players in bold are still active with Angola.
Competitive record
FIFA World Cup
As of 2026, Angola has qualified once for a FIFA World Cup. Its first participation in the World Cup qualifiers was in 1986, where they won in the first round, beating Senegal 4−3 on penalty kicks. They later lost in the second round of the 1986 World Cup qualifiers to Algeria. Algeria went to the third round and qualified for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.
Angola's first participation in the World Cup was in the 2006 World Cup, in Germany.
Honours
Continental
African Nations Championship
Runners-up (1): 2011
Regional
COSAFA Cup
Champions (5): 1999, 2001, 2004, 2024, 2025
Runners-up (1): 2006
Third place (3): 1998, 2000, 2005
Central African Games
Silver medal (1): 1987
Friendly Tounaments
Torneio da Amizade
Champions:(1) 1985
Torneio dos 5
Third place: (1) 1985