1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (CAF)
| Qualification for championships (CAF) |
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Listed below are the dates and results for the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the African zone (CAF). For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification.
A total of 38 CAF teams entered the competition. However, Mali and Niger both withdrew before the draw was made. The African Zone was allocated five places (out of 32) in the final tournament.
Summary
There would be two rounds of play:
- First Round: Cameroon, Nigeria, Morocco and Egypt, the four highest-ranked teams according to FIFA, received byes and advanced to the Final Round directly. The remaining 32 teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The winners would advance to the Final Round.
- Final Round: The 20 teams were divided into five groups of four teams each. The teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners would qualify. These were:
First round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mauritania .svg.png){kind=small} |
0–2 |  |
0–0 | 0–2 |
Namibia  |
3–1 |  |
2–0 | 1–1 |
Malawi  |
0–4 |  |
0–1 | 0–3 |
Uganda  |
1–5 |  |
0–2 | 1–3 |
Guinea-Bissau  |
4–5 |  |
3–2 | 1–3 |
Gambia  |
2–5 |  |
2–1 | 0–4 |
Swaziland  |
0–3 |  |
0–1 | 0–2 |
Burundi  |
2–0 |  |
1–0 | 1–0 |
Madagascar  |
3–4 |  |
1–2 | 2–2 |
Congo  |
3–1 |  |
2–0 | 1–1 |
Mauritius  |
1–7 |  |
1–5 | 0–2 |
Rwanda .svg.png){kind=small} |
1–5 | .svg.png){kind=small} |
1–3 | 0–2 |
Kenya  |
3–2 |  |
3–1 | 0–1 |
Togo  |
3–2 |  |
2–1 | 1–1 |
Sudan  |
2–3 |  |
2–0 | 0–3 |
Tanzania  |
1–2 |  |
0–0 | 1–2 |
First Leg
| Namibia |
2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
Hoeseb  Ortmann |
Report |
| Malawi |
0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Tinkler |
| Guinea-Bissau |
3–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Tavares Co |
Report | Camara |
| Gambia |
2–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Corr Sillah |
Report | Debbah |
| Burundi |
1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Wambo |
Report |
| Madagascar |
1–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Raoelijaona |
Report | Sawu Takawira |
| Congo |
2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Niere Miyamou |
Report |
Second Leg
| Burkina Faso |
2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Ouédraogo Traore |
Report |
Burkina Faso won 2–0 on aggregate
| Mozambique |
1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Macamo |
Report | Khob |
Namibia won 3–1 on aggregate
| South Africa |
3–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Bartlett Fish |
Report |
South Africa won 4–0 on aggregate
Angola won 5–1 on aggregate
| Guinea |
3–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Soumah Bangoura |
Report | Co |
Guinea won 5–4 on aggregate
Liberia won 5–2 on aggregate
Gabon won 3–0 on aggregate
| Sierra Leone |
0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Mbuyi |
Burundi won 2–0 on aggregate but withdrew before the Final Round started, so their place was given to Sierra Leone.
| Zimbabwe |
2–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Zviripayi Takawira |
Report | Ratoanaivo Rasoanaivo |
Zimbabwe won 4–3 on aggregate
| Ivory Coast |
1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Dao |
Report | Imboula |
Congo won 3–1 on aggregate
Zaire won 7–1 on aggregate
Tunisia won 5–1 on aggregate
Kenya won 3–2 on aggregate
Togo won 3–2 on aggregate
Zambia won 3–2 on aggregate
Ghana won 2–1 on aggregate
Final round
Key:
- Teams highlighted in green qualified for the finals.
Group 1
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 13 |
|
6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 12 |
|
6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 12 | −1 | 10 |
|
6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 17 | −10 | 0 |
| Nigeria |
2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Amokachi |
Report |
| Kenya |
1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Simiyu |
Report | Akpoborie |
| Burkina Faso |
0–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Oulare Soumah |
Group 2
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 16 |
 |
6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 10 |
|
6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 10 | −8 | 4 |
|
6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 17 | −11 | 4 |
Group 3
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 13 |
|
6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 10 |
|
6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 8 |
.svg.png){kind=small} |
6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 9 | −5 | 2 |
In May 1997, Zaire were renamed the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo DR).
| South Africa |
1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Masinga |
Report |
| Zambia |
0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
| Congo |
2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Younga-Mouhani |
Report |
| Zaire |
1–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Tumba |
Report | Khumalo Masinga |
| Congo |
1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Younga-Mouhani |
Report |
| South Africa |
1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Masinga |
Report |
Group 4
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 14 |
|
6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 10 |
|
6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 7 | −1 | 4 |
|
6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 14 | −8 | 4 |
Group 5
Gabon vs Sierra Leone was not played, since neither team could advance with a win.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 12 | 16 |
|
5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 7 |
|
6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 6 |
|
5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 11 | −10 | 1 |
| Morocco |
4–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Hababi Raghib Fertout |
Report |
| Sierra Leone |
1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Kanu |
Report |
| Sierra Leone |
1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Conteh |
Report | A. Kamara |
Match abandoned after 53 minutes due to crowd trouble. FIFA allowed the result to stand
| Sierra Leone |
0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Bassir |
| Gabon |
P–P | |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Match postponed due to Sierra Leone not being able to travel from Freetown due to conflict. The match was never rearranged due to the result having no effect on final group standings
| Ghana |
0–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Amidu Kallon |
Qualified teams
The following five teams from CAF qualified for the final tournament.
| Team | Qualified as | Qualified on | Previous appearances in FIFA World Cup1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Final Round Group 1 winners | 7 June 1997 | 1 (1994) |
 | Final Round Group 2 winners | 8 June 1997 | 1 (1978) |
| Final Round Group 3 winners | 16 August 1997 | 0 (debut) |
| Final Round Group 4 winners | 17 August 1997 | 3 (1982, 1990, 1994) |
| Final Round Group 5 winners | 8 June 1997 | 3 (1970, 1986, 1994) |
- 1 Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.
Goalscorers
- 5 goals
- 4 goals
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- 3 goals
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- 2 goals
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- 1 goal
- 1 own goal
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