| Nickname | Les Aigles (The Eagles) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Fédération Malienne de Football (FMF) | |||
| Confederation | CAF (Africa) | |||
| Sub-confederation | WAFU (West Africa) | |||
| Head coach | Tom Saintfiet | |||
| Captain | Djigui Diarra | |||
| Mostcaps | Seydou Keita (102)[1] | |||
| Top scorer | Seydou Keita (25) | |||
| Home stadium | Stade du 26 Mars | |||
| FIFA code | MLI | |||
| ||||
| FIFA ranking | ||||
| Current | 54 1 (19 November 2025)[2] | |||
| Highest | 23 (June 2013) | |||
| Lowest | 117 (October 2001) | |||
| First international | ||||
 Mali 4–3Central African Republic  (Madagascar; 13 April 1960) | ||||
| Biggest win | ||||
 Mali 11–0Mauritania  (Senegal; 1 October 1972) | ||||
| Biggest defeat | ||||
 Algeria 7–0Mali (Algeria; 13 November 1988)  Kuwait 8–1Mali (Kuwait City,Kuwait; 5 September 1997) | ||||
| Africa Cup of Nations | ||||
| Appearances | 14 (first in1972) | |||
| Best result | Runners-up (1972) | |||
| African Nations Championship | ||||
| Appearances | 3 (first in2011) | |||
| Best result | Runners-up (2016,2020) | |||
TheMali national football team (Bambara: Mali jamana ntolatantɔn,French:Équipe du Mali de football) representsMali in men's internationalfootball and is governed by theMalian Football Federation. The team's nickname isLes Aigles. They represent the country at tournaments organized by bothFIFA and theConfederation of African Football (CAF).
While Mali is a major youth football power in both Africa and the world, they have never qualified for any seniorFIFA World Cup finals in history. They have qualified for theAfrica Cup of Nations on 14 occasions.
Mali were suspended by FIFA on 17 March 2017 due to 'government interference' with the national football association, namely dissolving its executive committee.[4] However, the side was re-instated by FIFA on 29 April after the executive committee was re-introduced by the Malian government.[5]
Mali reached the1972 African Nations Cup final, but lost 3–2 toCongo. They failed to qualify for the finals again until1994 when they reached the semi-finals, an achievement repeated in2002,2004,2012 and 2013.
They played their firstWorld Cupqualifier in the year2000. As part of theCAF's qualifiers for the2002 World Cup, Mali lost in the preliminary round toLibya. Two years later, the country hosted the 2002 African Cup of Nations.[6]
Mali's under-23's team managed to qualify for the2004 Summer Olympics inGreece. The team coached byCheick Kone managed to reach the quarter-finals ofthe Olympic tournament before losing toItaly.[7]
In the2006 World Cupqualifiers, Mali beatGuinea-Bissau in thepreliminaries. In the resultingsecond round, Mali finished fifth in its group. On 27 March 2005, riots broke out inBamako after Mali lost a World Cup qualifier toTogo, 2–1 on a last minute goal.[8]
In the2010 African Nations Cup, Mali made football headlines for coming back from losing 4–0 with eleven minutes left to level 4–4 withAngola.[9]
| Manufacturer | Period |
|---|---|
 Kappa | 1998–2003 |
 Baliston | 2003–2007 |
 Airness | 2007– |
The rivalry between Mali andTunisia has been evident in recent years in terms of the number of frequent matches, especially in theAfrica Cup of Nations. The two teams met for the first time on 6 January 1974, during a friendly match inBamako, which ended with a 1–0 victory for Mali.[10] The match between the two teams in the1994 African Cup of Nations, which was held in Tunisia, remains one of the biggest setbacks witnessed by the Tunisian national team, as Mali won the match 2–0,[11] which led to Tunisia's early exclusion from the tournament that was held on its soil. In recent years, the team's matches have continued, as they met in the last three consecutive editions of the African Cup of Nations2019,2021 and2023, all of which were in the group stage,[12][13] where Mali won two matches and one ended in a draw.[14] The two teams met in the third andfinal round of the2022 World Cup qualification. Two round-robin matches were played. However, Tunisia qualified for the World Cup after winning the first leg in Bamako 1–0 with an own goal from defenderMoussa Sissako,[15] and a goalless draw prevailed in the return match inRadès.[16] This was Mali's closest chance of qualifying for the World Cup.[17] The competition record remains with Tunisia with a slight advantage. Tunisia won 6 matches, 3 of which ended in draws, and Mali won 5 matches.
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
v
Eswatini| 19 November 20242025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification | Mali | 6–0 | Eswatini | Bamako, Mali |
| 15:00 UTC+0 | Report | Stadium:Stade du 26 Mars Attendance: 8,000 Referee: Mohamed Ali Moussa |
v Mali| 20 March2026 World Cup Qualification | Comoros | 0–3 | Mali | Berkane, Morocco |
| 22:00 UTC+1 | Report | Stadium:Berkane Municipal Stadium Referee: Mahmood Ali Mahmood Ismail (Sudan) |
v Mali| 24 March2026 World Cup Qualification | Central African Republic | 0–0 | Mali | Casablanca, Morocco |
| 17:00 UTC+1 | Report | Stadium:Larbi Zaouli Stadium Referee: Godfrey Nkhakananga (Malawi |
v
Madagascar| October2026 World Cup Qualification | Mali | 4–1 | Madagascar | |
| --:-- UTC+2 |
v Mali| 18 NovemberFriendly | Jordan | 0–0 | Mali | Tunis, Tunisia |
| 20:30 UTC+1 | Report | Stadium:Hammadi Agrebi Stadium Referee: Nidhal Ben Ltaief (Tunisia) |
v
Zambia| 22 December2025 AFCON Group A | Mali | – | Zambia | Casablanca, Morocco |
| 15:30 UTC+1 | Stadium:Mohammed V Stadium |
v Mali| 26 December2025 AFCON Group A | Morocco | – | Mali | Rabat, Morocco |
| 13:00 UTC+1 | Stadium:Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium |
v Mali| 29 December2025 AFCON Group A | Comoros | – | Mali | Casablanca, Morocco |
| 18:30 UTC+1 | Stadium:Mohammed V Stadium |
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Head coach |  Tom Saintfiet |
| Assistant coach | Alou Badra Diallo |
| Goalkeeper coach | Bounafou Doumbia |
| Fitness coaches |  Riedoh Berdien Alexandre Coppolani Bougadary Sangare |
| Team doctor | Dr. Halidou Maiga |
| Video analyst | Gregory Verheyden Stephen Oonan |
| International Scouts | Alessandro Soli Robby Echelmeyer |
Ben Oumar Sy (1960–66)
György Tóth (1966–70)Karl-Heinz Weigang (1970–73)
Mykola Holovko (1979–82)Kidian Diallo (1982–89)Molobaly Sissoko (1989–93)Mamadou Keïta (1993–97)Christian Sarramagna (1998–2000)Romano Mattè (2000–01)
Henryk Kasperczak (2001–02)Christian Dalger (2002–03)Henri Stambouli (2003–04)Alain Moizan (2004)Mamadou Keïta (2004–05)Pierre Lechantre (2005–06)Amadou Pathé Diallo (2006)Jean-François Jodar (2006–08)
Stephen Keshi (2008–10)Alain Giresse (2010–12)Amadou Pathé Diallo (2012)Patrice Carteron (2012–13)Amadou Pathé Diallo (2013)Henryk Kasperczak (2013–15)Alain Giresse (2015–17)Mohamed Magassouba (2017–2022)Éric Chelle (2022–2024)Tom Saintfiet (2024–present)The following players were called up for thefriendly match againstJordan on 18 November 2025.[18]
Caps and goals correct as of 12 October 2025, after the match againstMadagascar.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GK | Djigui Diarra | (1995-02-27)27 February 1995 (age 30) | 61 | 0 |  Young Africans | |
| 1GK | Mamadou Samassa | (1990-02-16)16 February 1990 (age 35) | 18 | 0 | Laval | |
| 1GK | Ismael Diawara | (1994-11-11)11 November 1994 (age 31) | 10 | 0 |  Sirius | |
| 2DF | Hamari Traoré | (1992-01-27)27 January 1992 (age 33) | 58 | 3 | Paris | |
| 2DF | Mamadou Fofana | (1998-01-21)21 January 1998 (age 27) | 48 | 1 |  New England Revolution | |
| 2DF | Amadou Dante | (2000-10-07)7 October 2000 (age 25) | 15 | 0 |  Arouca | |
| 2DF | Fodé Doucouré | (2001-02-03)3 February 2001 (age 24) | 7 | 0 | Le Havre | |
| 2DF | Daouda Guindo | (2002-10-14)14 October 2002 (age 23) | 4 | 0 | Brest | |
| 2DF | Ousmane Camara | (2003-03-06)6 March 2003 (age 22) | 3 | 0 | Angers | |
| 2DF | Cheick Oumar Konaté | (2004-04-02)2 April 2004 (age 21) | 3 | 0 | Clermont | |
| 2DF | Woyo Coulibaly | (1999-05-26)26 May 1999 (age 26) | 2 | 0 | Sassuolo | |
| 2DF | Nathan Gassama | (2001-01-05)5 January 2001 (age 24) | 0 | 0 |  Baltika Kaliningrad | |
| 3MF | Lassana Coulibaly | (1996-04-10)10 April 1996 (age 29) | 50 | 1 | Lecce | |
| 3MF | Amadou Haidara | (1998-01-31)31 January 1998 (age 27) | 47 | 2 | RB Leipzig | |
| 3MF | Aliou Dieng | (1997-10-15)15 October 1997 (age 28) | 43 | 2 |  Al Ahly | |
| 3MF | Mohamed Camara | (2000-01-06)6 January 2000 (age 25) | 34 | 3 |  Al-Sadd | |
| 3MF | Mamadou Sangaré | (2002-06-26)26 June 2002 (age 23) | 9 | 0 | Lens | |
| 3MF | Brahima Diarra | (2003-07-05)5 July 2003 (age 22) | 1 | 0 |  Al Wahda | |
| 4FW | El Bilal Touré | (2001-10-03)3 October 2001 (age 24) | 25 | 9 |  Beşiktaş | |
| 4FW | Lassine Sinayoko | (1999-12-08)8 December 1999 (age 25) | 22 | 8 | Auxerre | |
| 4FW | Moussa Sylla | (1999-11-25)November 25, 1999 (age 25) | 6 | 0 | Schalke 04 | |
| 4FW | Gaoussou Diarra | (2002-11-21)21 November 2002 (age 23) | 5 | 1 |  Feyenoord | |
| 4FW | Mamadou Doumbia | (2006-02-18)18 February 2006 (age 19) | 5 | 1 |  Watford | |
| 4FW | Mamadou Camara | (2001-02-07)7 February 2001 (age 24) | 3 | 0 | Laval | |
| 4FW | Gaoussou Diakité | (2005-09-26)26 September 2005 (age 20) | 1 | 0 |  Lausanne-Sport | |
The following players have been called up for Mali in the last 12 months.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | N'Golo Traoré | (1999-12-31)31 December 1999 (age 25) | 0 | 0 | Stade Malien | v. Madagascar, 12 October 2025 |
| GK | Lassine Diarra | (2002-11-11)11 November 2002 (age 23) | 0 | 0 | Lyon | v. Ghana, 8 September 2025 |
| DF | Abdoulaye Diaby | (2000-07-04)4 July 2000 (age 25) | 9 | 0 | Grasshopper | v. Madagascar, 12 October 2025 |
| DF | Sikou Niakaté | (1999-07-10)10 July 1999 (age 26) | 14 | 1 | Braga | v. Chad, 9 October 2025INJ |
| DF | Salim Diakité | (2000-06-03)3 June 2000 (age 25) | 6 | 0 | Palermo | v. Ghana, 8 September 2025 |
| DF | Moussa Diarra | (2000-11-10)10 November 2000 (age 25) | 6 | 0 |  Alavés | v. Ghana, 8 September 2025 |
| DF | Ibrahima Cissé | (2001-02-15)15 February 2001 (age 24) | 2 | 0 | Schalke 04 II | v. Ghana, 8 September 2025 |
| DF | Cheick Keita | (2003-04-02)2 April 2003 (age 22) | 1 | 0 | Charleroi | v. DR Congo, 5 June 2025 |
| DF | Issiar Dramé | (1999-02-16)16 February 1999 (age 26) | 0 | 0 | Estrela Amadora | v. DR Congo, 5 June 2025 |
| MF | Yves Bissouma | (1996-08-30)30 August 1996 (age 29) | 42 | 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | v. Madagascar, 12 October 2025 |
| MF | Kamory Doumbia | (2003-02-18)18 February 2003 (age 22) | 26 | 14 | Brest | v. Madagascar, 12 October 2025 |
| MF | Mahamadou Doumbia | (2004-05-15)15 May 2004 (age 21) | 2 | 0 |  Al-Ittihad | v. Ghana, 8 September 2025 |
| MF | Moussa Diakité | (2003-11-04)4 November 2003 (age 22) | 0 | 0 | Cádiz | v. DR Congo, 5 June 2025 |
| MF | Kalidou Sidibé | (1999-01-28)28 January 1999 (age 26) | 0 | 0 | Guingamp | v. DR Congo, 5 June 2025 |
| FW | Dorgeles Nene | (2002-12-23)23 December 2002 (age 22) | 27 | 9 | Fenerbahçe | v. Madagascar, 12 October 2025 |
| FW | Mustapha Sangaré | (1998-12-24)24 December 1998 (age 26) | 5 | 0 |  Levski Sofia | v. Madagascar, 12 October 2025 |
DCL Player refused to join the team after the call-up. | ||||||
| Rank | Player | Caps | Goals | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seydou Keita | 102 | 25 | 1998–2015 |
| 2 | Mahamadou Sidibé | 97 | 0 | 1996–2010 |
| 3 | Bassala Touré | 95 | 17 | 1992–2008 |
| 4 | Adama Tamboura | 89 | 0 | 2004–2015 |
| 5 | Adama Coulibaly | 85 | 1 | 1998–2014 |
| 6 | Soumaila Coulibaly | 83 | 14 | 1995–2009 |
| 7 | Mahamadou Diarra | 73 | 7 | 1998–2012 |
| 8 | Djigui Diarra | 72 | 0 | 2015–present |
| 9 | Adama Traoré | 61 | 9 | 2013–present |
| 10 | Hamari Traoré | 59 | 3 | 2015–present |
| Rank | Player | Goals | Caps | Ratio | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seydou Keita | 25 | 102 | 0.25 | 1998–2015 |
| 2 | Frédéric Kanouté | 23 | 39 | 0.77 | 2004–2010 |
| 3 | Bassala Touré | 17 | 95 | 0.18 | 1994–2008 |
| 4 | Cheick Diabaté | 15 | 38 | 0.39 | 2005–2016 |
| 5 | Yaya Dissa | 14 | 42 | 0.33 | 1995–2001 |
| Soumaila Coulibaly | 14 | 83 | 0.17 | 1995–2009 | |
| 7 | Ibrahima Koné | 13 | 22 | 0.59 | 2017–present |
| Kamory Doumbia | 13 | 26 | 0.5 | 2022–present | |
| 9 | Modibo Maïga | 12 | 58 | 0.21 | 2007–2016 |
| 10 | Salif Keïta | 11 | 26 | 0.42 | 1964–1972 |
| FIFA World Cup record | Qualification record | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | ||||
| 1930 to1962 | Not a FIFA member | Not a FIFA member | ||||||||||||||||
| 1966 | Withdrew | Withdrew | ||||||||||||||||
| 1970 to1990 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||||
| 1994 | Withdrew | Withdrew | ||||||||||||||||
| 1998 | ||||||||||||||||||
  2002 | Did not qualify | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |||||||||||
| 2006 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 15 | 15 | ||||||||||||
| 2010 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 21 | 15 | ||||||||||||
 2014 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 7 | ||||||||||||
| 2018 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 11 | ||||||||||||
| 2022 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 1 | ||||||||||||
  2026 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 6 | ||||||||||||
| 2030 | To be determined | To be determined | ||||||||||||||||
| 2034 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 0/15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 58 | 24 | 16 | 18 | 78 | 59 | |||||
Mali have never won the Africa Cup of Nations; their best result at the tournament was runners-up in1972. Mali have qualified for the tournament fourteen times in total, finishing as runners-up once, third twice, and fourth three times. Prior to 2008, each time Mali qualified, they reached the knockout stage having only qualified four times before then.
| Africa Cup of Nations record | Qualification record | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Squad | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
 1957 | Part of France | Part of France | ||||||||||||||
 1959 | ||||||||||||||||
 1962 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||
| 1963 | ||||||||||||||||
 1965 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | ||||||||||||||
| 1968 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1970 | ||||||||||||||||
 1972 | Runners-up | 2nd | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 11 | Squad | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 | |
 1974 | Did not qualify | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 6 | |||||||||
 1976 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 3 | ||||||||||
| 1978 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||||||||
| 1980 | Did not enter | |||||||||||||||
 1982 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 7 | ||||||||||
 1984 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 6 | ||||||||||
| 1986 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 9 | ||||||||||
| 1988 | Withdrew | |||||||||||||||
| 1990 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 7 | ||||||||||
 1992 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 7 | ||||||||||
| 1994 | Fourth place | 4th | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 8 | Squad | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 7 | |
| 1996 | Did not qualify | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 15 | 10 | |||||||||
 1998 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 9 | ||||||||||
| 2000 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 3 | ||||||||||
| 2002 | Fourth place | 4th | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 5 | Squad | Qualified as hosts | ||||||
 2004 | Fourth place | 4th | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 10 | Squad | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2006 | Did not qualify | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 15 | 15 | |||||||||
| 2008 | Group stage | 10th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | Squad | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 1 | |
 2010 | 9th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 6 | Squad | 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 21 | 15 | ||
  2012 | Third place | 3rd | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 5 | Squad | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 6 | |
| 2013 | Third place | 3rd | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 8 | Squad | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2015 | Group stage | 10th | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | Squad | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 6 | |
| 2017 | 12th | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | Squad | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 3 | ||
| 2019 | Round of 16 | 11th | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | Squad | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 2 | |
 2021 | 11th | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | Squad | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 4 | ||
| 2023 | Quarter-finals | 7th | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 4 | Squad | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 2 | |
| 2025 | Qualified | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 1 | |||||||||
  2027 | To be determined | To be determined | ||||||||||||||
 2029 | ||||||||||||||||
| Total | Runners-up | 14/35 | 59 | 21 | 21 | 17 | 71 | 69 | — | 146 | 74 | 34 | 38 | 224 | 136 | |
Mali has competed in fiveAfrican Nations Championship tournaments, finishing as runners-up twice.
| African Nations Championship record | Qualification record | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 2009 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
 2011 | Group stage | 13th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2014 | Quarter-finals | 8th | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | |
 2016 | Runners-up | 2nd | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 4 | |
| 2018 | Did not qualify | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | ||||||||
| 2020 | Runners-up | 2nd | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2022 | Group stage | 15th | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | |
| Total | Runners-up | 5/7 | 21 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 19 | 21 | 20 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 32 | 11 | |
| African Games record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
 1965 | Runners-up | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 5 | |
| 1973 | Did not qualify | |||||||
| 1978 | Group stage | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | |
| 1987 | Did not qualify | |||||||
| 1991–present | SeeMali national under-23 football team | |||||||
| Total | 2/4 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 13 | 10 | |
As of 18 November 2025[as of?]
Silver medal (1): 1965
Champions (3): 1989, 1997, 2007
Runners-up (4): 1979, 1981, 1987, 1988
Third place (5): 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 2001 Runners-up (3): 2008, 2011, 2016| Competition | | | | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAF African Cup of Nations | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| CAF African Nations Championship | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
