Although one of the less successful sides in the strong West Africa region, Niger has produced a couple of noteworthy runs in qualifying tournaments. One of their best performances was in the
1982 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in which Niger eliminated
Somalia and
Togo on the
away goals rule, but were beaten by
Algeria in the third round where only eight teams were left. Notable players in this run included Jacques Komlan, Hassane Adamou and
Moussa Kanfideni. In 1990, they set a record by thrashing
Mauritania 7–1 in continental qualifiers, the highest positive score margin for the
Mena. In the
2004 African Nations Cup qualifiers, Niger won all their home games (including a win over
Guinea) to finish on nine points, just three short of qualification. The Niger squad is also plagued by financial concerns, which have caused them to withdraw from international tournaments on more than one occasion. The
Nigerien Football Federation would have turned to fundraising to pay for their trip to the
2010 African Cup of Nations in
Angola, had they qualified. On 10 October 2010, Niger earned a shock 1–0 win over
Egypt at home in the
2012 African Cup of Nations qualification. Despite a failed run for AFCON 2010, Niger hosted and won the
UEMOA Tournament in November 2010, and followed up with their first ever qualification for the African Nations Championship in February 2011. After home wins over
South Africa and
Sierra Leone, on 8 October 2011 Niger qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in its history, despite losing 3–0 in Egypt. Niger, South Africa and Sierra Leone all ended with nine points, but Niger qualified thanks to their superior head-to-head record against their rivals. At the
2012 African Cup of Nations, Niger was placed in Group C alongside co-hosts
Gabon,
Tunisia and
Morocco. In their opening match, Niger lost 2–0 to Gabon, while against Tunisia in
Libreville, Niger trailed 1–0 on an early goal from
Youssef Msakni in which he dribbled his way through for a fine goal after just four minutes.
William N'Gounou, however, then made history by scoring Niger's first ever goal at the African Cup of Nations. A 1–1 draw looked likely, but
Issam Jemâa's goal would eliminate Niger from the tournament. In the final match, Niger faced Morocco in a match featuring two sides already eliminated from the tournament.
Younès Belhanda scored on an assist from
Marouane Chamakh just 11 minutes from time to give Morocco a 1–0 victory. Later in 2012, Niger repeated its success in African Nations Cup qualifiers by beating
Guinea in a two-legged series to qualify for the
2013 Africa Cup of Nations. Guinea won the first match 1–0, but Niger won 2–0 in the second leg. Goalscorers
Mohamed Chikoto and
Issoufou Boubacar had sent Niger to another African Cup of Nations tournament. In their first match at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, Niger lost 1–0 to
Mali at the
Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in
Port Elizabeth. Mali captain
Seydou Keita handed his nation the hard-fought victory five minutes before the end of the encounter. Niger then earned their first point ever at the African Cup of nations after holding
DR Congo to a 0–0 draw. In the third match,
Ghana outclassed Niger 3–0 to reach the quarter-finals as Group B winners. Niger finished bottom of the group. On 22 May 2014, Niger played a friendly match against
Ukraine, marking the first ever match against a European nation. Oumarou Bale scored in the 56th minute, cancelling out a 20th-minute goal from
Ivan Ordets before Ukraine won on a goal from
Taras Stepanenko as the match finished 2–1. ==Results and fixtures==