30 January 2010 - A Classic Case Of Adding Insult To Injury

On 30 January 2010, the Confederation of African Football suspended Togo from the African Cup of Nations and fined them for withdrawing from the tournament after the team was attacked by gunmen.

The attack occurred on 8 January as the team was traveling by bus to the 2010 Cup of Nations. Shortly after crossing the border from the Republic of the Congo to the Angolan province of Cabinda, a group of Angolan rebels opened fire on the buses with machine guns, killing three people and wounding several others, including two players. Afterward, Togo withdrew from the competition and called for other teams to boycott it.

The CAF offered their condolences to the team, but took issue with Togo's withdrawal. In particular, the organization was bothered by the timing, as Togo did not formally give notice of their decision until the day after their first scheduled match.

The Confederation met on 30 January to consider Togo's actions and announced their decision that day. Citing the Togolese government's decision to bring the team home as an infringement on CAF regulations, they fined the team $50,000 and banned them from the next two editions of the Cup of Nations.

Togo Interior Minister Pascal Bodjona called the CAF's decision "insulting to the family of those who lost their lives and those traumatized because of the attack" and threatened to take immediate legal action. The CAF eventually lifted the bans in May 2010, but Togo failed to qualify for the 2012 tournament.

7 September 2010 - Togo Or Not Togo, That Is The Question

On 7 September 2010, Bahrain secured a 3-0 win over Togo. Or so they thought.

The friendly, played in Bahrain, was their third match under new manager, Josef Hickersberger, who was still waiting for his first win after draws with China and Qatar. And Bahrain thought they got it in convincing fashion with a brace from striker Jaycee Okwunwanne (9', 45') and a penalty kick from striker Ismail Abdul-Latif (67').

Afterward, in fact, Hickersberger lamented the lack of competition from Togo, saying "They were not fit enough to play 90 minutes; the match was very boring, and basically it was not good for us because we wanted to get information about the strength of our team, especially playing with many of our professionals. This was a wasted opportunity on a FIFA date, and I’m very sad about it." And then things got strange.

Christophe Chao, the Togo sports minister, denied that any Togo team ever took the pitch against Bahrain, claiming that nobody in Togo had been informed of such a game. Moreover, none of the 18 people listed on the pre-match roster submitted to Bahrain minutes before the match was a Togo international.

As it turned out, a Togo assistant coach named Tchanile Bana organized the match and falsely represented the team as Togo's national side. He had committed a similar fraud earlier in the year by organizing a match against Egypt without the knowledge or consent of the Togolese authorities. He had received a two-year ban from all football activities after that match, which Togo extended to three years after learning of his involvement in the match against Bahrain.

8 January 2010 - Togo Attacked

On 8 January 2010, gunmen fired upon two Togo team buses, killing 3 people and wounding 7 others.

The buses--one containing the national team and the other holding their luggage--were traveling through the Angolan province of Cabinda, where Togo were scheduled to begin their Africa Cup of Nations campaign three days later. Although part of Angola, Cabinda is an exclave, separated by the rest of the nation by the Republic of the Congo. Shortly after the team crossed the border separating the two, a group of Cabindan separatists ambushed the traveling party in a machine gun attack that lasted approximately 30 minutes.

Two different rebel groups later claimed responsibility for the attack, though one claimed that it was not directed at Togo, but instead at the Angolan security forces guarding them. The gunmen fired multiple shots into both buses, however, killing three people--assistant coach Amelete Abalo, press officer Stan Ocloo, and driver Mário Adjoua. The list of wounded included 5 players as well as the team doctor and physiotherapist.

Togo withdrew from the Cup of Nations following the attack, prompting a CAF ban and a $50,000 fine. Togo appealed the ban, which was lifted later that year.

13 June 2006 - Togo Gets Taken Out

On 13 June 2006, South Korean World Cup hero Ahn Jung-Hwan, who scored the match winner against Italy in the 2002 tournament, again provided the winning goal in a World Cup match as the Koreans came from behind to beat Togo, 2-1. It was their first World Cup victory on foreign soil.

Playing before a crowd of 48,000 at the FIFA WM Stadion in Frankfurt, the Togolese took a first-half lead when forward Mohamed Kader broke through the Koreans' back line and sent a shot past the keeper and in off the far post in the 31st minute. Midfielder Junior Sènaya came close to extending the lead a few minutes later with a free kick, but Korean keeper Lee Woon-Jae got a hand to the ball and tipped it over the bar.

Eight minutes into the second half, Togo center back and captain Jean-Paul Abalo tripped Park Ji-Sung just outside the box, earning a second yellow card from referee Graham Poll. Midfielder Lee Chun-Soo took the 54th-minute free kick, blasting it over the wall and into the top left corner of the net for the equalizer.

Down to ten men, Togo continued to press, but were undone in the 72nd minute when Ahn ripped a shot into the goal from 20 yards out to seal the win for South Korea.

South Korean followed their performance with a 1-1 draw with France and a 2-0 loss to Switzerland that put them in third place and out of the tournament. Togo, meanwhile, failed to score another goal and finished at the bottom of the group without a single point.

8 October 2005 - Down To The Wire In Africa

On 8 October 2005, African qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup came to an exciting conclusion, as four nations secured spots for their first-ever World Cup Finals on the final day.

In Group 1, Togo came from behind twice to defeat Congo 2-3 in Brazzaville. Forward Mohamed Kader (pictured) scored the 70th minute matchwinner after netting an equalizer in the 60th minute. The win put Togo two points clear of Senegal at the top of the table.

Ghana, who needed only a draw to secure their first World Cup berth, topped Group 2 with an 0-4 away drubbing of Cape Verde. The win sent them five points clear of both Congo and South Africa, who played to a 2-2 draw on the final day.

Group 3 was won by Côte d'Ivoire with a 1-3 away win at Sudan. They finished one point ahead of Cameroon, who drew 1-1 at home against Egypt after Cameroonian back Pierre Wome failed to convert a penalty kick in added time, hitting the outside of the post.

Angola guaranteed their trip to Germany with a 0-1 away victory over Group 4 bottom-dwellers Rwanda. The win put Angola level on points with group favorites Nigeria, but Angola advanced on their head-to-head record, having earned a win and a draw against Nigeria earlier in qualification.

The four debutants were joined in the World Cup by Group 5 winners Tunisia, who were making their fourth appearance in the tournament. Of the five African sides, only Ghana advanced out of the group stages with wins over the Czech Republic (2-0) and the United States (2-1), but then fell to Brazil in the first knockout round.

26 November 2011 - Tragedy Hits Togo Again

On 26 November 2011, six members of Togolese club Étoile Filante de Lomé died when their bus crashed en route to a match.

The team were traveling north from Lomé for a league match against Sokodé Semassi when one of their tires burst, sending the bus off the road and down into a ravine near the city of Atakpame. According to witnesses, the bus (pictured) rolled several time and burst into flame.

While most of the passengers were able to escape, six people died. Subsequent reports did not confirm whether the fatalities were players or members of the technical staff. Another 25 people were injured and were rushed to a hospital in Lomé.

The tragedy occurred on the heels of the 2010 shooting that claimed the lives of two members of Togo's national team and a 2007 helicopter crash that killed 22 people, including the country's Sports Minister, Richard Attipoe.

30 January 2010 - A Classic Case Of Adding Insult To Injury

On 30 January 2010, the Confederation of African Football suspended Togo from the African Cup of Nations and fined them for withdrawing from the tournament after the team was attacked by gunmen.

The attack occurred on 8 January as the team was traveling by bus to the 2010 Cup of Nations. Shortly after crossing the border from the Republic of the Congo to the Angolan province of Cabinda, a group of Angolan rebels opened fire on the buses with machine guns, killing three people and wounding several others, including two players. Afterward, Togo withdrew from the competition and called for other teams to boycott it.

The CAF offered their condolences to the team, but took issue with Togo's withdrawal. In particular, the organization was bothered by the timing, as Togo did not formally give notice of their decision until the day after their first scheduled match.

The Confederation met on 30 January to consider Togo's actions and announced their decision that day. Citing the Togolese government's decision to bring the team home as an infringement on CAF regulations, they fined the team $50,000 and banned them from the next two editions of the Cup of Nations.

Togo Interior Minister Pascal Bodjona called the CAF's decision "insulting to the family of those who lost their lives and those traumatized because of the attack" and threatened to take immediate legal action. The CAF eventually lifted the bans in May 2010, but Togo failed to qualify for the 2012 tournament.

7 September 2010 - Togo Or Not Togo, That Is The Question

On 7 September 2010, Bahrain secured a 3-0 win over Togo. Or so they thought.

The friendly, played in Bahrain, was their third match under new manager, Josef Hickersberger, who was still waiting for his first win after draws with China and Qatar. And Bahrain thought they got it in convincing fashion with a brace from striker Jaycee Okwunwanne (9', 45') and a penalty kick from striker Ismail Abdul-Latif (67').

Afterward, in fact, Hickersberger lamented the lack of competition from Togo, saying "They were not fit enough to play 90 minutes; the match was very boring, and basically it was not good for us because we wanted to get information about the strength of our team, especially playing with many of our professionals. This was a wasted opportunity on a FIFA date, and I’m very sad about it." And then things got strange.

Christophe Chao, the Togo sports minister, denied that any Togo team ever took the pitch against Bahrain, claiming that nobody in Togo had been informed of such a game. Moreover, none of the 18 people listed on the pre-match roster submitted to Bahrain minutes before the match was a Togo international.

As it turned out, a Togo assistant coach named Tchanile Bana organized the match and falsely represented the team as Togo's national side. He had committed a similar fraud earlier in the year by organizing a match against Egypt without the knowledge or consent of the Togolese authorities. He had received a two-year ban from all football activities after that match, which Togo extended to three years after learning of his involvement in the match against Bahrain.

8 January 2010 - Togo Attacked

On 8 January 2010, gunmen fired upon two Togo team buses, killing 3 people and wounding 7 others.

The buses--one containing the national team and the other holding their luggage--were traveling through the Angolan province of Cabinda, where Togo were scheduled to begin their Africa Cup of Nations campaign three days later. Although part of Angola, Cabinda is an exclave, separated by the rest of the nation by the Republic of the Congo. Shortly after the team crossed the border separating the two, a group of Cabindan separatists ambushed the traveling party in a machine gun attack that lasted approximately 30 minutes.

Two different rebel groups later claimed responsibility for the attack, though one claimed that it was not directed at Togo, but instead at the Angolan security forces guarding them. The gunmen fired multiple shots into both buses, however, killing three people--assistant coach Amelete Abalo, press officer Stan Ocloo, and driver Mário Adjoua. The list of wounded included 5 players as well as the team doctor and physiotherapist.

Togo withdrew from the Cup of Nations following the attack, prompting a CAF ban and a $50,000 fine. Togo appealed the ban, which was lifted later that year.

13 June 2006 - Togo Gets Taken Out

On 13 June 2006, South Korean World Cup hero Ahn Jung-Hwan, who scored the matchwinner against Italy in the 2002 tournament, again provided the winning goal in a World Cup match as the Koreans came from behind to beat Togo, 2-1. It was their first World Cup victory on foreign soil.

Playing before a crowd of 48,000 at the FIFA WM Stadion in Frankfurt, the Togolese took a first-half lead when forward Mohamed Kader broke through the Koreans' back line and sent a shot past the keeper and in off the far post in the 31st minute. Midfielder Junior Sènaya came close to extending the lead a few minutes later with a freekick, but Korean keeper Lee Woon-Jae got a hand to the ball and tipped it over the bar.

Eight minutes into the second half, Togo center back and captain Jean-Paul Abalo tripped Park Ji-Sung just outside the box, earning a second yellow card from referee Graham Poll. Midfielder Lee Chun-Soo took the 54th-minute free kick, blasting it over the wall and into the top left corner of the net for the equalizer.

Down to ten men, Togo continued to press, but were undone in the 72nd minute when Ahn ripped a shot into the goal from 20 yards out to seal the win for South Korea.

South Korean followed their performance with a 1-1 draw with France and a 2-0 loss to Switzerland that put them in third place and out of the tournament. Togo, meanwhile, failed to score another goal and finished at the bottom of the group without a single point.

8 October 2005 - Down To The Wire In Africa

On 8 October 2005, African qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup came to an exciting conclusion, as four nations secured spots for their first-ever World Cup Finals on the final day.

In Group 1, Togo came from behind twice to defeat Congo 2-3 in Brazzaville. Forward Mohamed Kader (pictured) scored the 70th minute matchwinner after netting an equalizer in the 60th minute. The win put Togo two points clear of Senegal at the top of the table.

Ghana, who needed only a draw to secure their first World Cup berth, topped Group 2 with an 0-4 away drubbing of Cape Verde. The win sent them five points clear of both Congo and South Africa, who played to a 2-2 draw on the final day.

Group 3 was won by Côte d'Ivoire with a 1-3 away win at Sudan. They finished one point ahead of Cameroon, who drew 1-1 at home against Egypt after Cameroonian back Pierre Wome failed to convert a penalty kick in added time, hitting the outside of the post.

Angola guaranteed their trip to Germany with a 0-1 away victory over Group 4 bottom-dwellers Rwanda. The win put Angola level on points with group favorites Nigeria, but Angola advanced on their head-to-head record, having earned a win and a draw against Nigeria earlier in qualification.

The four debutants were joined in the World Cup by Group 5 winners Tunisia, who were making their fourth appearance in the tournament. Of the five African sides, only Ghana advanced out of the group stages with wins over the Czech Republic (2-0) and the United States (2-1), but then fell to Brazil in the first knockout round.