AFCON 2025
The top three African players who hold the position of the continent’s top scorers at the FIFA World Cup are household names in their respective countries.
One of them remains the oldest player to score at the FIFA World Cup. He scored at the age of 42 at the 1994 World Cup in the United States.
The first on the list missed the chance that could have written the name of his country in gold as the first African country to reach the World Cup semi-finals in 2010.
Unfortunately, he missed a late penalty, which forced the game into extra time and penalties, where his team lost to a South American country with a sky blue shirt and black shorts jersey.
Last and also the least is often referred to as “Governor” in his native land. He is one of the most decorated players from his country and remains arguably the country’s best player-ever at the World Cup to date.
- Ahmed Musa (Nigeria) – 4 Goals
Nigeria’s brightest World Cup marksman. Ahmed Musa is the only African with two braces in different tournaments. He scored the first brace against Argentina in a 3-2 loss in 2014 and repeated the feat against Iceland in 2018 Inna 2-0 win during the preliminary round. Ahmed Musa delivered memorable moments for the Green and White before he retired in 2025.
- Roger Milla (Cameroon) – 5 Goals
The eternal icon and oldest goalscorer in World Cup history. At 38 in 1990, Milla came off the bench to score four goals — two against Romania and two in extra time against Colombia — propelling Cameroon to the quarter-finals, the deepest run by an African side at the time. He danced at the corner flag after each, creating one of football’s most joyful images. In 1994, aged 42 years and 39 days, he scored again against Russia, a record that still stands today.
- Asamoah Gyan (Ghana) – 6 Goals
Africa’s all-time World Cup top scorer. The Black Stars captain delivered across three tournaments (2006–2014). Nicknamed “Baby Jet”, Gyan scored Ghana’s first-ever World Cup goal against the Czech Republic in 2006, netted three times during the historic 2010 quarter-final run (including a dramatic extra-time winner vs USA), and added two more in 2014 against Germany and Portugal. Asamoah was reliable, clinical, and clutch — Ghana, over the years have struggled to find a goal poacher like Gyan since he retired in 2019. He scored an impressive 51 goals in 109 appearances for the Ghana Black Stars.
Players with 3 goals (tied): Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon) — Across 1998, 2002, 2010, 2014.
Papa Bouba Diop (Senegal) — All in 2002 (including winner vs France).
Wahbi Khazri (Tunisia), Youssef En-Nesyri (Morocco), André Ayew (Ghana) — Also at 3.
