On the 10th of June 2025, Senegal made history by becoming the first team from Africa to beat the England team in a football match. It was a shock defeat for the Three Lions, but then given how poor they had been against Andorra a few days earlier, plus the raft of changes made by head coach Thomas Tuchel, perhaps it was not so surprising after all.
That England have made it this long without ever coming unstuck against African opposition is perhaps the bigger surprise. Back in 1977 Pele famously declared his belief that an African side would “win the World Cup before the year 2000” and here we are in 2025 and no African nation has yet made it to the final. In fact, only once has a side from the continent made it as far as the semis, and that was in the most recent tournament.
Morocco’s semi-final appearance in Qatar 2022 is the best any side from Africa has managed at the World Cup. However, there are certainly signs that the level on the continent may be rising, with so many top African players now plying their trade in the Premier League and other top European leagues.
It is, surely, only a matter of time before we see one of the continent’s powerhouses breakthrough the glass ceiling at the World Cup and make the final, and then, of course, go on and win it. But quite when that will be is hard to know and it would be a big surprise if it were to happen within the next three tournaments.
Clearly an African nation beating England is trifling in comparison to one going all the way in the world’s biggest football tournament. It possibly raised more eyebrows in England than it did in Senegal or the wider continent. That said, it is still a benchmark of sorts and a sign of the progress being made by teams like Senegal. Or there is an outside chance Tuchel doesn’t know what he’s doing and England are nowhere near as good as many of their fans believe.
Either way, Senegal’s win at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground was a landmark one, and probably worth remembering for those who like football trivia and pub quizzes. But what is the overall record of the Three Lions against nations from Africa? Let’s take a look …
How Many Times Have England Played an African Side?
The fact that it has taken until 2025 for England to suffer defeat against a country from the continent of Africa sounds impressive. The fact that they have played more than 1,000 games in total adds to that but how often have they actually put their unbeaten record on the line. Obviously if the clash with Senegal was only the fourth match they have ever played in such a context, their unbeaten record is far less impressive than if it was the 60th.
Below we can see England’s head-to-head record against the various African nations they have come up against over the years. Obviously the Three Lions do not meet African nations in the Euros, Nations League, or World Cup qualifying, but they have met at the World Cup finals, as well as in various friendlies.
| Nation | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Cameroon | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Egypt | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Ghana | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Morocco | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Nigeria | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Senegal | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| South Africa | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Tunisia | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 21 | 14 | 1 | 6 |
As the table above shows, England have played nine different FIFA nations from Africa, with Cameroon the team they have played most often. In total they have now met opposition from the continent 21 times, with an overall record of 14 wins, six draws and just that solitary defeat against the Lions of Teranga.
The list of Confederation of African (CAF) football teams that England have not met is far, far longer. From Angola and Benin, through to Gabon and Gambia, onwards through the alphabet to Zambia and Zimbabwe, there are many African nations that the Three Lions have never come up against. In fact, there are a whopping 44 CAF teams that are yet to play England and the chances are that many of them never will – even if we allow for FIFA’s crazy dreams about a 64-team World Cup (and who knows, maybe a 128-nation one after that!).
Most Memorable Game
For many fans of a certain age, easily the most memorable clash between England and a CAF side came in 1990. The World Cup was held in Italy and England had a fine side that featured Gary Lineker, Gazza, Peter Shilton, Des Walker, Chris Waddle, John Barnes, David Platt and a number of other superb players.
England limped through Group F, topping the pile thanks to the only win the entire group witnessed. Every match was drawn apart from England’s clash with another African nation, Egypt. Defender Mark Wright got the only goal of the game which was certainly not a contender to be listed as the memorable clash.
Nonetheless, his goal saw Bobby Robson’s men advance, although in fairness, as it transpired, Egypt were the only member of the quartet who didn’t progress, with Republic of Ireland and Netherlands also booking their spots in the last 16. There, England beat Belgium in extra time with a late stunner from Platt, to set up a quarter-final tie against Cameroon, who were one of the breakout nations of the World Cup.
England vs Cameroon
On this day in 1990, England beat Cameroon 3-2 in a brilliant World Cup quarter-final, with Gary Lineker winning and scoring two penalties. pic.twitter.com/ntMBKQH0pz
— 90s Football (@90sfootball) July 1, 2023
Cameroon had topped Group B ahead of Romania and Argentina (who also advanced) and the Soviet Union, who did not. They beat Argentina 1-0 in what was perhaps the biggest result for an African nation at that time – even though they ended the match with just nine men. They also got the better of Romania, 2-1, before needing extra time to beat Colombia by the same score in the last 16.
Cameroon left one of the stars of the tournament, the aged Roger Milla, on the bench, despite his four tournament goals. England took the lead through Platt before Milla was introduced from the bench at the break. 16 minutes later he won a penalty and Cameroon were back in the game.
After 65 minutes, Cameroon’s star then created a goal for Eugene Ekeke. A shock was on the cards but late on England won a penalty which Lineker both earned and scored. In the 83rd minute, that was Lineker’s first penalty for his country but with time running out Gazza sent Lineker through and he was felled, leading to another penalty. Again, the Barcelona-bound striker picked himself up and scored.
It was an incredible game and England were a little lucky to win it in the end. It was the first time a CAF side would make the last eight of the World Cup and it would be 32 years before one of their continental rivals would better that performance. Let’s hope it is not another 32 years before we see an African nation in the final.