The Guinea-Bissau national football team (Portuguese: Seleção nacional de futebol da Guiné-Bissau) represents Guinea-Bissau in men's international association football and it is controlled by the Football Federation of Guinea-Bissau, The team has never qualified for the FIFA World Cups but qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations four times, making their debut in 2017. The team is a member of both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).
History World Cup qualifying Guinea-Bissau entered their first FIFA World Cup qualification with the aim of reaching the 1998 World Cup in France. The first round of African qualification required for them to play Guinea in a two-legged match. The first leg was held at home in the Estadio 24 de Setembro in Bissau on 1 June 1996 with an attendance of 15,000. Guinea-Bissau went 2–0 up at half-time after strikes from Pereira Tavares in 11th and 36th minutes. Guinea's Titi Camara equalised with his own brace in the 53rd and 54th minutes. Guinea-Bissau's Co Cipriano won the game with a 60th-minute penalty to make it 3–2. The away leg was held at the Stade du 28 Septembre in Conakry. Momo Soumah of Guinea scored to level the tie at half-time before Nando Có scored a bicycle kick for Guinea-Bissau to put his side 4–3 up on aggregate, however another goal from Momo Soumah and a winner from Tibou Bangoura won the match for Guinea, giving them a 5–4 lead on aggregate.
Guinea-Bissau had never progressed beyond the first round of qualification until the 2022 qualifiers where they defeated São Tomé and Príncipe 3–1 over two legs, thanks to three goals from Joseph Mendes.
Africa Cup of Nations Guinea-Bissau first participated in AFCON qualification in 1994 where they defeated Cape Verde over three legs, but failed to register a single point in the second round as their draw against Togo was annulled after Togo withdrew from the competition. In 1996 Guinea-Bissau withdrew from qualification after a draw and two losses to begin the campaign, leading to their ban for 1998 AFCON.
Guinea-Bissau next entered qualification in 2006 where they lost 4–1 to Mali national football team and were again banned in 2008 for unpaid debts to CAF. In 2012 they secured a single win (1–0 against Kenya) and five losses to finish last in Group J. The following year they were eliminated 2–0 by Cameroon. In 2015, after beating Central African Republic 3–1, they lost to Botswana by the same scoreline.
For the 2017 qualifiers, Guinea-Bissau was drawn from Pot 4 into Group E and, despite being the lowest ranked nation in their group, achieved ten points and qualified for the 2017 tournament ahead of Congo, Zambia and Kenya. In their African Cup of Nations debut, Guinea-Bissau drew 1–1 with Gabon with a 91st-minute equaliser by Juary Soares. This was the only point they collected at the tournament and they were eliminated in the group stage.
Guinea-Bissau then also won their Group in the 2019 qualifiers to reach a second straight Finals. They again managed one draw (0–0 against Benin) and two losses and failed to progress to the knock-out stages.
On March 30, 2021, Guinea-Bissau went into their final qualifying match against Congo, needing a victory to qualify. They ended comfortable winners with goals from Piqueti, Frédéric Mendy and Jorginho to secure their third successive AFCON appearance.
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
2025
2026
2027
Coaching staff Position NameHead coach Luis Boa MorteAssistant coaches Domingos Indjai Filipe SambuFitness coach Mustafá DanfaGoalkeeper coach Augusto YansanéTeam doctors Dr. Raimundo Djabaté Dr. Francisco DjoróPhysiotherapists Leopoldo Kanté Vasco Saidú Vítor Djaló Gilson Baldé Match analyst Lucrécio Sané
Coaching history
Guilherme Farinha (1990–1994) Armando Antonio Miranda (2000) Baciro Candé (2001–2009) Luís Norton de Matos (2010–2012) Carlos Manuel (2012–2014) Paulo Torres (2014–2016) Baciro Candé (2016–2024) Luís Boa Morte (2024–2025) Emiliano Té (2025–present)
Players Current squad The following players were selected for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualification matches against Tanzania and Nigeria on 25 and 29 September 2026, respectively.
Caps and goals correct as of 29 September 2026, after the match against Nigeria.
Recent call-ups The following players have been called up for Guinea-Bissau in the last 12 months.
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. WD Withdrew from squad.
Records
Players in bold are still active with Guinea Bissau.
Most appearances RankPlayerCapsGoalsCareer 1 Jonas Mendes 60 0 2010–present 2 Sori Mané 51 0 2017–present 3 Bura Nogueira 41 2 2015–present 4 Piqueti 40 7 2015–20235 Mama Baldé 39 9 2019–present Opa Sanganté 39 0 2020–present 7 Alfa Semedo 38 2 2021–present 8 Lino 36 2 1994–2001 9 Jefferson Encada 35 0 2021–present 10 Zezinho 34 2 2010–201911 Fali Candé 33 1 2021–present Nanu 33 0 2019–present-->
Top goalscorers RankPlayerGoalsCapsRatioCareer1 Nando Có 9 6 1996–2001 Mama Baldé 9 39 2019–present 3 Piqueti 7 40 2015–20234 Cícero Semedo 6 14 2010–2016 Frédéric Mendy 6 24 2016–2022 6 Jorginho 5 29 2018–present7 Zinho Gano 4 7 2022–2024 Joseph Mendes 4 14 2019–20229 Yuri 3 5 1994–1996 Basile de Carvalho 3 8 2011–2012 Franculino Djú 3 18 2023–present Toni Silva 3 22 2016–2024
Competition records
FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup recordQualification recordYearRoundPosition*1930 to 1974Part of Part of 1978 to 1986Not a FIFA memberNot a FIFA member 1990 and 1994Did not enterDeclined participation 1998Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 4 5 2002 2 0 1 1 0 3 2006 2 0 0 2 1 4 2010 2 0 1 1 0 1 2014 2 0 1 1 1 2 2018 2 0 1 1 2 4 20228332812 202610244810 2030To be determinedTo be determined 2034Total 30611132441
Africa Cup of Nations Africa Cup of Nations recordQualification recordYearRoundPosition* * 1957Part of Part of 1959 1962 1963 1965 1968 1970 1972 1974 1976Not affiliated to CAF Not affiliated to CAF 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988Did not enterDid not enter 1990 1992 1994Did not qualify8208620 1996Withdrew during qualifyingWithdrew 1998Banned for withdrawing in 1996Banned 2000Did not enterDid not enter 2002WithdrewWithdrew 2004 2006Did not qualify200214 2008Did not enterDid not enter 2010Did not qualify201101 2012610528 2013201102 2015442263 2017Group stage14th301225631277 201920th301204623187 202122nd301203630397 202323rd3003276411115 2025Did not qualify612346 2027To be determinedTo be determined 2029TotalGroup stage4/35120394195420 11 295470
Honours Regional Amilcar Cabral Cup Runners-up (1): 1983
References
External links
Official website – Guinea-Bissau Football Federeation O'Jogo: News on Portuguese speaking African football teams