| Tournament statistics | |
|---|---|
| Top scorer(s) |  Roger Milla (6 goals) |
| Qualification for championships (CAF) |
|---|
Listed below are the dates and results for the 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the African zone (CAF). For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification.
A total of 29 CAF teams entered the competition. However, Central African Republic was excluded by FIFA for not paying the entry fee. The African Zone was allocated 2 places (out of 24) in the final tournament. Finally 26 nations played at least one of the 46 games.
Format
There would be four rounds of play:
- First Round: 4 teams, Sudan, Liberia, Togo, and Zimbabwe, received byes and advanced to the Second Round directly. The remaining 24 teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The winners would advance to the Second Round. Ghana and Uganda withdrew before playing.
- Second Round and Third Round: In each of these rounds, the teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The winners would advance to the next round. Libya withdrew before playing the Second round.
- Final Round: The 4 teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The winners would qualify.
First round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Senegal  |
0–1 |  Morocco |
0–1 | 0–0 |
Zaire .svg.png.webp){kind=small} |
7–3 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Mozambique |
5–2 | 2–1 |
| Cameroon |
4–1 |  Malawi |
3–0 | 1–1 |
Guinea  |
4–2 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Lesotho |
3–1 | 1–1 |
Tunisia .svg.png.webp){kind=small} |
2–2 (3–4 p) |  Nigeria |
2–0 | 0–2 |
Libya .svg.png.webp){kind=small} |
2–1 |  Gambia |
2–1 | 0–0 |
Ethiopia .svg.png.webp){kind=small} |
0–4 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Zambia |
0–0 | 0–4 |
Niger  |
1–1 (a) |  Somalia |
0–0 | 1–1 |
Sierra Leone  |
3–5 |  Algeria |
2–2 | 1–3 |
Kenya  |
3–6 |  Tanzania |
3–1 | 0–5 |
Egypt  |
w/o |  Ghana |
— | — |
Madagascar  |
w/o |  Uganda |
— | — |
Liberia  |
Bye | |||
Sudan  |
Bye | |||
Togo  |
Bye | |||
Zimbabwe  |
Bye |
Morocco won 1–0 on agg. and advanced to the Second Round.
| Mozambique | 1–2 | Zaire |
|---|---|---|
Rui Marcos  55' (pen.) |
Muteba 15' Mayélé 17' |
Zaire won 7–3 on agg. and advanced to the Second Round.
Cameroon won 4–1 on agg. and advanced to the Second Round.
Guinea won 4–2 on agg. and advanced to the Second Round.
Nigeria won on penalties after 2–2 on agg. and so advanced to the Second Round.
Libya won 2–1 on agg. and advanced to the Second Round.
Zambia won 4–0 on agg. and advanced to the Second Round.
Niger advanced to the Second Round due on away goals after 1–1 on agg.
| Algeria | 3–1 | Sierra Leone |
|---|---|---|
| Fergani 42' Bensaoula 47' Madjer 78' |
Johnson 79' |
Algeria won 5–3 on agg. and advanced to the Second Round.
Tanzania won 6–3 on agg. and advanced to the Second Round.
.svg.png.webp){kind=small}
Egypt advanced to the Second Round, Ghana withdrew.
| Madagascar | w/o | Uganda |
|---|---|---|
| Withdrew |
Madagascar advanced to the Second Round, Uganda withdrew.
Second round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria |
3–1 | Sudan |
2–0 | 1–1 |
| Niger |
2–2 (a) | Togo |
0–1 | 2–1 |
| Liberia |
0–1 | Guinea |
0–0 | 0–1 |
| Cameroon |
2–1 | Zimbabwe |
2–0 | 0–1 |
| Morocco |
2–2 (5–4 p) | Zambia |
2–0 | 0–2 |
| Nigeria |
3–1 | Tanzania |
1–1 | 2–0 |
| Madagascar |
3–4 | Zaire |
1–1 | 2–3 |
| Egypt |
w/o | Libya |
— | — |
Algeria won 3–1 on agg. and advanced to the Third Round.
Niger advanced to the Third Round due on away goals after a draw 2–2 on agg.
Guinea won 1–0 on agg. and advanced to the Third Round.
Cameroon won 2–1 on agg. and advanced to the Third Round.
Morocco won on penalties after a draw 2–2 on agg. and advanced to the Third Round.
| Tanzania | 0–2 | Nigeria |
|---|---|---|
| Chiedozie 5' M'Wokozhi 79' |
Nigeria won 3–1 on agg. and advanced to the Third Round.
| Madagascar | 1–1 | Zaire |
|---|---|---|
| Kira 26' |
Malgbanga 74' |
| Zaire | 3–2 | Madagascar |
|---|---|---|
| Suzeti 1' Mayélé 26' Malgbanga 75' |
Tshikalu 19' (o.g.) Bin Amidou 39' |
Zaire won 4–3 on agg. and advanced to the Third Round.
Egypt advanced to the Third Round, Libya withdrew.
Third round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria |
4–1 | Niger |
4–0 | 0–1 |
| Guinea |
1–2 | Nigeria |
1–1 | 0–1 |
| Morocco |
1–0 | Egypt |
1–0 | 0–0 |
| Zaire |
2–6 | Cameroon |
1–0 | 1–6 |
Algeria won 4–1 on agg. and advanced to the Final Round.
Nigeria won 2–1 on agg. and advanced to the Final Round.
Morocco won 1–0 on agg. and advanced to the Final Round.
Cameroon won 6–2 on agg. and advanced to the Final Round.
Final round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nigeria |
1–4 | Algeria |
0–2 | 1–2 |
| Morocco |
1–4 | Cameroon |
0–2 | 1–2 |
Algeria won 4–1 on agg. and qualified for the 1982 FIFA World Cup.
Cameroon won 4–1 on agg. and qualified for the 1982 FIFA World Cup.
Qualified teams
| Team | Qualified as | Qualified on | Previous appearances in FIFA World Cup1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria | Final Round winners | 31 October 1981 | 0 (debut) |
| Cameroon | Final Round winners | 29 November 1981 | 0 (debut) |
- 1 Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.
Goalscorers
- 6 goals
- 5 goals
- 3 goals
- Tedj Bensaoula
- Rabah Madjer
- Emmanuel Kundé
- Thuwein Ali
- Muteba N'Daye
- 2 goals
- Ali Fergani
- Grégoire Mbida
- Jean Manga Onguéné
- Amara Touré
- Sammy Owino
- Gil Guiambe
- John Chiedozie
- Peter Tino
- Imowa Malgbanga
- Ayel Mayélé
- Kiyika Tokodi
Godfrey Chitalu
- 1 goal
- Rabah Gamouh
- Nourredine Kourichi
- Djamel Zidane
- Théophile Abega
- Ibrahim Aoudou
- Jean-Pierre Tokoto
- Assan Sarr
- Seydouba Bangoura
- Naby Laye Camara
- Mory Koné
- Ibrahima Sory Touré
- Elly Adero
- Sele Leboela
- Teboho Masia
- Abubaker Bani
- Rashid Mohammed Rashid
- Abdou Bin Amidou
- Michel Kira
- Stock Dandize
- Mohamed Boussati
- Abdelaziz Daidi
- Ahmed Limane
- Mohamed Timoumi
- Mustapha Yaghcha
- Francisco Rui Marcos
- Bernard Akue Adovi
- Atcha
- Moussa Kanfideni
- Abou Seydou
- Leotis Boateng
- Mudashiru Lawal
- Christian M'Wokozhi
- Henry Nwosu
- Emmanuel Osigwe
- Felix Owolabi
- Ismael Dyfan
- Sentu Johnson
- Akie Noah
- Ismail Mohammed Sharif
- Abu Obeida Adam
- Mohammed Adolf Rishard
- Mohammed Salim
- Djogou Akoulassi
- Saibi Eklou Dodji
Témime Lahzami- Néjib Liman
- Masengo Ilunga
- Tshilumba Mukendi
- Monduone N'Kama
- M'Peti Suzeti
- Alex Chola
- Pele Kaimana
- Emmanuel Musonda
- Bizwell Phiri
- David Muchineripi
- 1 own goal
- Kuliwa Tshikalu (playing against Madagascar)