2006 African Cup of Nations
| كأس أمم أفريقيا 2006 | |
|---|---|
Africa Cup of Nations 2006 official logo
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| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Egypt |
| Dates | 20 January – 10 February |
| Teams | 16 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 6 (in 4 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |
 Egypt (5th title)
|
| Runners-up |  Ivory Coast |
| Third place |  Nigeria |
| Fourth place |  Senegal |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 32 |
| Goals scored | 73 (2.28 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |
 Samuel Eto'o (5 goals) |
| Best player |
Ahmed Hassan
|
The 2006 Africa Cup of Nations was the 25th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the association football championship of Africa. It was hosted by Egypt. Just like in 2004, the field of sixteen teams was split into four groups of four. Egypt won its fifth championship, beating Cote d'Ivoire in the final 4−2 in a penalty shootout after a goalless draw.
For the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations, qualification was done through the CAF's qualification process for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Whereas only the winner of each group qualified for the World Cup, the top 3 finishers in each of the five qualification groups gained entry into the Africa Cup of Nations. The exception was qualification group 3, which contained hosts Egypt. Since Egypt qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations automatically as the hosts, the final berth was instead awarded to the fourth-place finishers, Libya.
2006 also marked the first time that the defending champion did not automatically qualify for the finals. Tunisia, 2004's champion, qualified for the Cup of Nations by winning their group in the qualification process.
Teams highlighted in green progress to the quarter-finals.
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