Association football, or soccer, is the most popular sport in Benin. Governed by the Benin Football Federation, the

Benin national football team The Benin national football team (French: Équipe nationale de Football du Benin), nicknamed ''Les Guépards (The Cheetahs)'', represent Benin in men's international association football and are controlled by the Benin Football Federation. They ...

(Les Ecureuils ) joined both FIFA and CAF in 1969 as Dahomey. Dahomey became

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...

in 1975.

Les Ecureuils

Les Ecureuils (The Squirrels, as the national squad is nicknamed) have never qualified for the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

and made their only appearance in the African Cup of Nations in 2004. They enjoyed their highest world ranking as of September 2007 with a rank of 79th in the world. The home stadium is Stade de l'Amitié in Cotonou.

Notable Beninese footballers

Romuald Boco Romuald Boco (born 8 July 1985) is a footballer who last played as a midfielder for Leyton Orient. Born in France, he has represented Benin at full international level. Club career Accrington Stanley Born in Bernay, Eure, Boco signed for Accrin ...

* Laurent D'Jaffo *

Moussa Latoundji Moussa Latoundji (born 13 August 1978) is a Beninese former football player and current caretaker manager side Benin national football team. Club career Born in Porto-Novo, Latoudji started his career in his native Benin with amateur side Dra ...

Stéphane Sessègnon Stéphane Sessègnon (born 1 June 1984) is a Beninese professional footballer who plays for Sirens F.C. in the Maltese Premier League. He is a Benin international, having represented the nation at the 2008, 2010 and 2019 editions of the Af ...

Rudy Gestede Rudy Philippe Michel Camille Gestede (born 10 October 1988) is a professional footballer who last played as a striker for Iranian club Esteghlal. After coming through the youth ranks at Metz, Gestede spent a year on loan gaining experience ...

References

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