| Qualification for championships (CAF) | 
|---|
This page details the process of the 1998 African Cup of Nations Qualification phase. Burkina Faso, as hosts, and South Africa, as title holders, qualified automatically.
Banned and withdrawn teams
 Nigeria was banned for withdrawing from the 1996 final tournament.
 Nigeria was banned for withdrawing from the 1996 final tournament.
The following countries were banned from entering for withdrawing during the qualifying stages:
These teams did not enter:
Qualification rounds
Preliminary round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mauritius  | 2–1 |  Seychelles | 1–0 | 1–1 | 
| Congo  | 0–1 |  Togo | 0–0 | 0–1 | 
| Botswana  | 0–6 |  Namibia | 0–0 | 0–6 | 
| Central African Republic  | w/o |  Burundi | — | — | 
| Benin  | 4–1 | .svg.png.webp) Mauritania | 4–1 | 0–0 | 
| Uganda  | 2–2 (2–4 p) | .svg.png.webp) Ethiopia | 1–1 | 1–1 | 
| Mauritius  | 1–0 |  Seychelles | 
|---|---|---|
| Bax  25' | 
| Seychelles  | 1–1 |  Mauritius | 
|---|---|---|
| Rose  50' | Mocude  20' | 
| Central African Republic  | Cancelled |  Burundi | 
|---|---|---|
| Withdrew | 
| Burundi  | Cancelled |  Central African Republic | 
|---|---|---|
| Withdrew | 
| Benin  | 4–1 | .svg.png.webp) Mauritania | 
|---|---|---|
| Coles  3' Bessan  54', 72', 89' | Ould Bechir  67' | 
| Mauritania .svg.png.webp) | 0–0 |  Benin | 
|---|---|---|
Qualifying group stage
Group 1
Sudan withdrew on 16 January 1997, due to unrest in the east of the country. They had already competed one match (0–3 lost to Zimbabwe at home), but this result was later annulled.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|  Ghana | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 7 | 
|  Angola | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 
|  Zimbabwe | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 4 | 
|  Sudan (W) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 
(W) Withdrew
Group 2
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|  Ivory Coast | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 8 | +2 | 13 | 
|  Algeria | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 10 | 
|  Mali | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 
|  Benin | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 9 | −6 | 2 | 
| Ivory Coast  | 1–0 |  Benin | 
|---|---|---|
| Guel  12' | 
| Mali  | 1–2 |  Ivory Coast | 
|---|---|---|
| Sidibé  14' | Bakayoko  13' Tiéhi  22' | 
| Benin  | 0–0 |  Ivory Coast | 
|---|---|---|
Group 3
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|  Morocco | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 1 | +9 | 14 | 
|  Egypt | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 9 | 
|  Senegal | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 6 | −1 | 8 | 
| .svg.png.webp) Ethiopia | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 19 | −16 | 1 | 
Group 4
Central African Republic were disqualified on 30 January 1997 after the government refused to allow their squad to travel for a match in Sierra Leone on 25 January. Their results were annulled.
Due to the civil war, Sierra Leone withdrew two matches before the end of the tournament, but their results stood.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|  Tunisia | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 6 | 
|  Guinea | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 6 | 
|  Sierra Leone (W) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | −3 | 0 | 
|  Central African Republic (D) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 
(D) Disqualified; (W) Withdrew
| Tunisia  | 2–0 |  Sierra Leone | 
|---|---|---|
| S.Trabelsi  29' Souayah  69' | 
| Central African Republic  | 2–3 Annulled |  Guinea | 
|---|---|---|
| Matondo  30' Azo  48' (pen.) | Soumah  27', 89' Kéita  85' | 
| Guinea  | 1–0 |  Sierra Leone | 
|---|---|---|
| F. Camara  67' | 
Group 5
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|  Cameroon | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 3 | +5 | 10 | 
|  Namibia | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 7 | −3 | 8 | 
|  Gabon | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 
|  Kenya | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 5 | 
| Cameroon  | 4–0 |  Namibia | 
|---|---|---|
| M'Boma  3', 85' Missé-Missé  35', 48' | 
| Namibia  | 1–1 |  Gabon | 
|---|---|---|
| Van Wyk  86' | Aubameyang  19' (pen.) | 
Group 6
During the tournament, the country of Zaire was renamed DR Congo.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|  Togo | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 10 | 
| .svg.png.webp) DR Congo | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 9 | 
|  Liberia | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 8 | −3 | 8 | 
|  Tanzania | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 5 | 
| Togo  | 1–1 | .svg.png.webp) Zaire | 
|---|---|---|
| Noutsoudje  90' | Simba  26' | 
| Liberia  | 1–0 |  Tanzania | 
|---|---|---|
| Zizi Roberts  54' | 
Group 7
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|  Zambia | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 14 | 
|  Mozambique | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 10 | 
|  Malawi | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 10 | −1 | 9 | 
|  Mauritius | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 12 | −8 | 1 | 
| Zambia  | 1–0 |  Mozambique | 
|---|---|---|
| Malitoli  4' | 
| Mozambique  | 3–0 |  Mauritius | 
|---|---|---|
| Chiquinho Conde  55' Faife  62' Macamo  65' | 
| Malawi  | 2–0 |  Mozambique | 
|---|---|---|
| Maduka  6' Kamanga  60' | 
| Mozambique  | 2–2 |  Zambia | 
|---|---|---|
| Tico-Tico  11' Chiquinho Conde  62' (pen.) | Kamwandi  15' Tembo  57' | 
| Mauritius  | 1–3 |  Mozambique | 
|---|---|---|
| Appou  65' | Chiquinho Conde  6' Nuro  33' Tico-Tico  89' | 
| Mozambique  | 2–1 |  Malawi | 
|---|---|---|
| Pinto Barros  85' Tico-Tico  88' | Nkhwazi  62' | 
Qualified teams
 Algeria Algeria
 Angola Angola
 Burkina Faso (hosts) Burkina Faso (hosts)
 Cameroon Cameroon
.svg.png.webp) DR Congo DR Congo
 Ivory Coast Ivory Coast
 Egypt Egypt
 Ghana Ghana
 Guinea Guinea
 Morocco Morocco
 Mozambique Mozambique
 Namibia Namibia
 South Africa (holders) South Africa (holders)
 Togo Togo
 Tunisia Tunisia
 Zambia Zambia


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