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.