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Tanzania national football team

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This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Tanzania women's national football team.

Tanzania
Nickname(s)Taifa Stars
AssociationTanzania Football Federation (TFF)
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationCECAFA (East & Central Africa)
Head coachHemed Morocco (interim)
CaptainMbwana Samatta
Most capsErasto Nyoni (107)
Top scorerMrisho Ngasa (25)
Home stadiumBenjamin Mkapa Stadium
FIFA codeTAN
First colours
Second colours
Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current 106 Steady (19 December 2024)[1]
Highest65 (February 1995)
Lowest175 (October–November 2005)
First international
 Uganda 7–0 Tanganyika 
(Uganda; Date Unknown 1945)
as Tanzania
 Tanzania 1–1 Kenya 
(Tanzania; 1 March 1969)
Biggest win
 Tanzania 7–0 Somalia 
(Jinja, Uganda; 1 December 1995)
 Somalia 0–7 Tanzania 
(Kampala, Uganda; 1 December 2012)
Biggest defeat
 Tanganyika 0–9 Kenya 
(Tanganyika; Date Unknown 1956)
as Tanzania
 Saudi Arabia 8–0 Tanzania 
(Dammam, Saudi Arabia; 11 September 1998)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances3 (first in 1980)
Best resultGroup stage (1980, 2019, 2023)
African Nations Championship
Appearances2 (first in 2009)
Best resultGroup stage (2009, 2020)
COSAFA Cup
Appearances3 (first in 1997)
Best resultThird place (2017)
CECAFA Cup
Appearances63 (first in 1945)
Best resultChampions (1949, 1950, 1951, 1964, 1965, 1974, 1994, 2010)

The Tanzania national football team (Swahili: Timu ya Taifa ya Mpira wa Miguu ya Tanzania) represents Tanzania in men's international football and is controlled by the Tanzania Football Federation, the governing body for football in Tanzania, Tanzania's home ground is Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium in Dar es Salaam and their head coach is Adel Amrouche from Algeria. They are colloquially known as the Taifa Stars. Tanzania has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup. Before uniting with Zanzibar, the team played as the Tanganyika national football team, The team represents both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).

The island of Zanzibar, part of Tanzania (and once an independent nation), is also an associate member of CAF and has played matches with other nations, but is not eligible to enter the World Cup or Africa Cup of Nations. See Zanzibar national football team.

Tanzania is currently ranked 121st in the FIFA World Rankings.[3]

History

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Since qualifying for the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations, Tanzania endured nearly 40 years without major success, struggling in both African and World Cup qualifiers. Their best effort was in 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualification, where the Taifa Stars defeated Burkina Faso twice and only finished three points behind group winners Senegal. In 2010 Tanzania won the CECAFA Cup for the third time.[citation needed]

A recent achievement was a 1–0 win against South Africa in the 2017 COSAFA Cup Quarter-finals. But afterwards, Tanzania lost the Semi-finals 2–4 to Zambia. Then, in the Third-place playoff, Tanzania managed to win the match against Lesotho 4–2 in a penalty shootout after the extra time ended in a goalless draw. This Third place was considered Tanzania's biggest football achievement in many years.[citation needed]

On 24 March 2019, Tanzania beat East African rivals Uganda 3–0 to reach the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 39 years. At the Finals the Taifa Stars, being the weakest team in the group, lost all three Group C matches, as predicted. A few months later, Tanzania qualified for the African Nations Championship for only the second time, as well as defeating Burundi in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.[citation needed]

On 19 November 2024 Tanzania won a narrow victory of 1–0 against Guinea which secured their fourth times Afcon qualification since 1980. A decisive goal by Simon Msuva sent them to the tournament in 2025. The Afcon finals are scheduled to take place from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026 in Morocco.

Coaching staff

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Head coach Tanzania Hemed Morocco
Assistant coach Tanzania Juma Mgunda
Assistant coach Tanzania Hemed Morocco
Assistant coach Germany Dr. Carolin Braun
Goalkeeper coach Saudi Arabia Osama Al-Hamdan
Physical coach Finland Mikael Mayoyo
Sports therapist Belgium Joris De Vos
Head of medical Tanzania Lisobine Kisongo
Team manager Tanzania Reinhard

Results and fixtures

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Main article: Tanzania national football team results

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

2023

[edit]
27 December Friendly Zanzibar  0–0  Tanzania

2024

[edit]
7 January Friendly Egypt  2–0  Tanzania Cairo, Egypt
18:00 UTC+2
Report Stadium: Cairo International Stadium
Referee: Hashem Al-Ibrahim (Kuwait)
17 January 2023 AFCON GS Morocco  3–0  Tanzania San Pédro, Ivory Coast
Stadium: Laurent Pokou Stadium
21 January 2023 AFCON GS Zambia  1–1  Tanzania San Pédro, Ivory Coast
Stadium: Laurent Pokou Stadium
24 January 2023 AFCON GS Tanzania  0–0  DR Congo Korhogo, Ivory Coast
Stadium: Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium
22 March 2024 FIFA World Series Tanzania  0–1  Bulgaria Baku, Azerbaijan
15:00 UTC+4 Report Despodov 52' Stadium: Dalga Arena
Attendance: 154
Referee: Aliyar Aghayev (Azerbaijan)
25 March 2024 FIFA World Series Tanzania  3–0  Mongolia Baku, Azerbaijan
17:00 UTC+4
Report Stadium: Dalga Arena
Attendance: 146
Referee: Elçin Məsiyev (Azerbaijan)
15 May Friendly Sudan  2–1  Tanzania Al Hawiyah, Saudi Arabia
16:00 UTC+3
Report
Report (SFA)
Stadium: King Fahd Sports City (Taif)
19 May Friendly Sudan  0–1  Tanzania Al Hawiyah, Saudi Arabia
17:00 UTC+3 Report
Stadium: King Fahd Sports City (Taif)
2 June Friendly Indonesia  0–0  Tanzania Jakarta, Indonesia
16:00 UTC+7 Stadium: Madya Stadium
11 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Zambia  0–1  Tanzania Ndola, Zambia
15:00 UTC+2 Report
Stadium: Levy Mwanawasa Stadium
Referee: Abdel Aziz Bouh (Mauritania)
4 September 2025 AFCON qualification Tanzania  0–0  Ethiopia Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
19:00 UTC+3 Report Stadium: Benjamin Mkapa Stadium
Referee: Issa Sy (Senegal)
10 September 2025 AFCON qualification Guinea  1–2  Tanzania Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast
16:00 UTC±0
Report
Stadium: Charles Konan Banny Stadium
Referee: Jean Ouattara (Burkina Faso)

Coaches

[edit]
Caretaker managers are listed in italics.

Players

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Current squad

[edit]

The following 27 players were called up for 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification matches against Ethiopia and Guinea on 4 and 10 September 2024.[9]

Caps and goals correct as of 10 September 2024, after the match against Guinea.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Ally Salim (2000-04-19) 19 April 2000 (age 24) 5 0 Tanzania Simba
1GK Abuutwalib Msheri (1999-02-22) 22 February 1999 (age 25) 3 0 Tanzania Young Africans
1GK Yona Geoffrey Amosi (1998-11-28) 28 November 1998 (age 26) 1 0 Tanzania Tanzania Prisons
2DF Mohamed Husseini (1996-11-01) 1 November 1996 (age 28) 46 0 Tanzania Simba
2DF Bakari Mwamnyeto (1995-10-05) 5 October 1995 (age 29) 44 0 Tanzania Young Africans
2DF Dickson Job (2000-12-29) 29 December 2000 (age 24) 25 1 Tanzania Young Africans
2DF Ibrahim Hamad (1997-11-12) 12 November 1997 (age 27) 18 1 Tanzania Young Africans
2DF Nickson Kibabage (2000-10-12) 12 October 2000 (age 24) 15 0 Tanzania Young Africans
2DF Lusajo Mwaikenda (2000-10-27) 27 October 2000 (age 24) 12 0 Tanzania Azam
2DF Pascal Msindo (2003-08-15) 15 August 2003 (age 21) 2 0 Tanzania Azam
2DF Abdulmalik Zakaria (1996-03-03) 3 March 1996 (age 28) 2 0 Tanzania Namungo
2DF Nathaniel Chilambo (1999-11-10) 10 November 1999 (age 25) 0 0 Tanzania Azam
3MF Himid Mao (1992-11-15) 15 November 1992 (age 32) 79 2 Egypt Ghazl El Mahalla
3MF Feisal Salum (1998-01-11) 11 January 1998 (age 26) 41 3 Tanzania Azam
3MF Mudathir Yahya (1995-05-06) 6 May 1995 (age 29) 34 1 Tanzania Young Africans
3MF Novatus Miroshi (2002-09-02) 2 September 2002 (age 22) 24 3 Turkey Göztepe
3MF Adolf Bitegeko (1998-12-26) 26 December 1998 (age 26) 2 0 Tanzania Azam
3MF Abel Josiah (2010-11-04) 4 November 2010 (age 14) 1 0 Tanzania TDS TFF Academy
3MF Hussein Semfuko (2004-05-17) 17 May 2004 (age 20) 0 0 Tanzania Coastal Union
4FW Edwin Balua (2001-08-08) 8 August 2001 (age 23) 5 0 Tanzania Simba
4FW Clement Mzize (2004-01-07) 7 January 2004 (age 20) 5 0 Tanzania Young Africans
4FW Waziri Shentembo (1996-08-11) 11 August 1996 (age 28) 4 1 Tanzania KMC
4FW Cyprian Kachwele (2005-02-15) 15 February 2005 (age 19) 1 0 Canada Whitecaps

Recent call-ups

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The following players have been called up for Tanzania in the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Kwesi Kawawa (2001-12-05) 5 December 2001 (age 23) 3 0 Sweden Karlslunds IF v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
GK Aishi Manula (1995-09-13) 13 September 1995 (age 29) 64 0 Tanzania Simba v.  Mongolia; 25 March 2024
GK Beno David Kakolanya (1994-06-27) 27 June 1994 (age 30) 4 0 Tanzania Singida Fountain Gate 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
GK Metacha Mnata (1998-11-25) 25 November 1998 (age 26) 9 0 Tanzania Young Africans 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Haji Mnoga (2002-04-16) 16 April 2002 (age 22) 13 0 England Aldershot Town v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
DF Lameck Elias Lawi (2000-11-28) 28 November 2000 (age 24) 2 0 Tanzania Coastal Union v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
DF Miano van den Bos (2003-03-31) 31 March 2003 (age 21) 5 0 Spain Villena v.  Sudan; 19 May 2024
DF Kennedy Juma (1994-08-07) 7 August 1994 (age 30) 11 0 Tanzania Simba v.  Mongolia; 25 March 2024
DF Abdi Banda (1995-05-20) 20 May 1995 (age 29) 20 0 South Africa Chippa United 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
MF Morice Abraham (2003-08-13) 13 August 2003 (age 21) 10 0 Serbia Spartak Subotica v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
MF Yusuph Kagoma (1996-02-01) 1 February 1996 (age 28) 2 0 Tanzania Geita Gold v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
MF Tarryn Allarakhia (1997-11-17) 17 November 1997 (age 27) 4 0 England Rochdale v.  Sudan; 19 May 2024
MF Mzamiru Yassin (1996-01-03) 3 January 1996 (age 28) 49 0 Tanzania Simba 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
MF Sospeter Bajana (1996-10-14) 14 October 1996 (age 28) 5 1 Tanzania Azam 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
MF Ayoub Idrissa Bilali (2001-07-27) 27 July 2001 (age 23) 1 0 Bosnia and Herzegovina Goražde 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Simon Msuva (1993-10-02) 2 October 1993 (age 31) 92 22 Algeria JS Kabylie v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
FW Kibu Denis (1998-12-04) 4 December 1998 (age 26) 20 0 Tanzania Simba v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
FW Charles M'Mombwa (1998-03-14) 14 March 1998 (age 26) 10 1 unattached v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
FW Abdul Hamisi Suleiman (2001-02-26) 26 February 2001 (age 23) 7 0 Tanzania Azam v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
FW Ben Starkie (2002-07-23) 23 July 2002 (age 22) 6 0 England Basford United v.  Zambia; 11 June 2024
FW Mohammed Sagaf (1997-11-12) 12 November 1997 (age 27) 3 0 England Boreham Wood v.  Sudan; 19 May 2024
FW Mbwana Samatta (captain) (1992-12-23) 23 December 1992 (age 32) 79 22 Greece PAOK 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
FW Said Khamis (2000-07-20) 20 July 2000 (age 24) 5 1 Serbia Jedinstvo Ub 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE

DEC Player refused to join the team after the call-up.
INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
PRE Preliminary squad.
RET Player has retired from international football.
SUS Suspended from the national team.

Player records

[edit]
As of 19 November 2024[10]
Players in bold are still active with Tanzania.

Most appearances

[edit]
Rank Name Caps Goals Career
1 Erasto Nyoni 107 7 2006–2021
2 Mrisho Ngassa 100 25 2006–2015
3 Kelvin Yondani 97 0 2008–2021
4 Simon Msuva 94 23 2012–present
5 Raphael Bocco 84 16 2009–2023
Shomari Kapombe 84 1 2011–present
7 Mbwana Samatta 83 22 2011–present
8 Himid Mao 81 2 2013–present
9 Juma Kaseja 79 0 2002–2021
10 Aishi Manula 66 0 2015–present

Top goalscorers

[edit]
Rank Name Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Mrisho Ngassa 25 100 0.25 2006–2015
2 Simon Msuva 23 94 0.24 2012–present
3 Mbwana Samatta 22 83 0.27 2011–present
4 Raphael Bocco 16 84 0.19 2009–2023
5 John Nteze Lungu 12 22 0.55 1992–2002
6 Jerson Tegete 8 28 0.29 2006–2011
Danny Mrwanda 8 34 0.24 2005–2011
8 Mohamed Rajab 7 20 0.35 2002–2011
Thomas Ulimwengu 7 51 0.14 2010–2021
Erasto Nyoni 7 107 0.07 2006–2021

Competitive record

[edit]

FIFA World Cup

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FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1930 to 1962 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
1966 and 1970 Did not enter Did not enter
West Germany 1974 Did not qualify 3 0 2 1 1 4
Argentina 1978 Withdrew Withdrew
Spain 1982 Did not qualify 4 1 1 2 7 6
Mexico 1986 2 0 2 0 1 1
Italy 1990 Did not enter Did not enter
United States 1994 Withdrew during qualifying Withdrew during qualifying
France 1998 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 1 2
South Korea Japan 2002 2 0 0 2 2 4
Germany 2006 2 0 1 1 0 3
South Africa 2010 6 2 2 2 9 6
Brazil 2014 8 3 0 5 10 14
Russia 2018 4 1 1 2 4 10
Qatar 2022 8 2 4 2 8 10
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined 3 2 0 1 2 2
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total 0/15 44 13 12 19 45 62

Africa Cup of Nations

[edit]
Main article: Tanzania at the Africa Cup of Nations
Africa Cup of Nations record Qualification record
Appearances: 3 Appearances: 24
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
as  Tanganyika as  Tanganyika
Sudan 1957 Not affiliated to CAF Not affiliated to CAF
United Arab Republic 1959
Ethiopia 1962
Ghana 1963
as  Tanzania as  Tanzania
Tunisia 1965 Not affiliated to CAF Not affiliated to CAF
Ethiopia 1968 Withdrew during qualifying Withdrew during qualifying
Sudan 1970 Did not qualify 4 1 1 2 3 10
Cameroon 1972 2 0 1 1 2 6
Egypt 1974 4 1 2 1 5 3
Ethiopia 1976 2 0 1 1 3 6
Ghana 1978 Withdrew during qualifying Withdrew during qualifying
Nigeria 1980 Group stage 7th 3 0 1 2 3 6 4 2 1 1 8 4
Libya 1982 Withdrew Withdrew
Ivory Coast 1984 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 3 4
Egypt 1986 Withdrew during qualifying Withdrew during qualifying
Morocco 1988 Did not qualify 3 0 1 2 3 6
Algeria 1990 2 0 2 0 2 2
Senegal 1992 6 1 2 3 4 7
Tunisia 1994 Withdrew during qualifying Withdrew during qualifying
South Africa 1996 Did not qualify 10 4 0 6 14 15
Burkina Faso 1998 6 1 2 3 5 7
Ghana Nigeria 2000 2 0 0 2 0 2
Mali 2002 2 0 0 2 2 4
Tunisia 2004 Withdrew during qualifying Withdrew during qualifying
Egypt 2006 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 0 3
Ghana 2008 6 2 2 2 4 7
Angola 2010 2 2 2 2 9 6
Equatorial Guinea Gabon 2012 6 1 2 3 6 9
South Africa 2013 2 0 2 0 2 2
Equatorial Guinea 2015 4 1 2 1 6 6
Gabon 2017 4 0 1 3 0 6
Egypt 2019 Group stage 24th 3 0 0 3 2 8 6 2 2 2 6 5
Cameroon 2021 Did not qualify 6 2 1 3 5 6
Ivory Coast 2023 Group stage 22nd 3 0 2 1 1 4 6 2 2 2 3 4
Morocco 2025 Qualified 6 3 1 2 5 4
Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2027 Qualified as co-hosts Qualified as co-hosts
2029 To be determined To be determined
Total Group stage 4/36 9 0 3 6 6 18 93 22 31 40 95 130

African Nations Championship

[edit]
African Nations Championship record Qualification record
Appearances: 2 Appearances: 7
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Ivory Coast 2009 Group stage 5th 3 1 1 1 2 2 6 4 1 1 10 4
Sudan 2011 Did not qualify 3 1 1 1 7 2
South Africa 2014 2 0 0 2 1 4
Rwanda 2016 2 0 1 1 1 4
Morocco 2018 2 0 2 0 1 1
Cameroon 2020 Group stage 10th 3 1 1 1 3 4 4 1 2 1 2 2
Algeria 2022 Did not qualify 4 2 0 2 3 5
Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2024 Qualified as hosts Qualified as hosts
Total Group stage 2/7 6 2 2 2 5 6 23 8 7 8 25 22

African Games

[edit]
African Games record
Year Result Pld W D L GF GA
Nigeria 1973 7th 3 0 0 3 3 7
Total 1/4 3 0 0 3 3 7

Gossage Cup / CECAFA Cup

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Main article: CECAFA Cup

Honours

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Regional

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References

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  1. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 19 December 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  2. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 25 December 2024. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
  3. ^ "FIFA". fifa.com. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  4. ^ "Brother Danny: Taifa Stars Ilivyofuzu Kwenda Lagos 1980". brotherdanny5b.blogspot.com. Archived from the original on 10 December 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  5. ^ "International Matches 1987 - Africa". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  6. ^ "International Matches 1992 - Africa". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 28 November 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  7. ^ "International Matches 1993 - Africa". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 3 December 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  8. ^ "International Matches 1998 - Africa". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  9. ^ "Final Squad". Instagram. Tanzania Football Federation.
  10. ^ "Tanzania". National Football Teams.
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