Benin is a relatively small country, about the size of Pennsylvania, in the western side of Africa. This country used to be called “Dahomey” and has a flat and sandy terrain with small patches of vegetations or savannahs. It is a typical African country where the people are sweet and hospitable.

The common greeting is a kiss on the cheeks and it has a lot of ethnic groups but one of the things that bring all of them together is football. Benin’s traditional sports has a lot to do with athletics but football is currently the Beninese’ national obsession with tennis as a close second.

Soccer is officiated by the Fédération Béninoise de Football and their national soccer team, nicknamed Les Écureuils until being renamed the Cheetahs in 2022, has been a member of FIFA and CAF since 1969 as Dahomey and changed to Benin in 1975. The team has never qualified for the World Cup, but has now reached the African Cup of Nations five times (2004, 2008, 2010, 2019 and 2025), with their best-ever performance coming in 2019, when they upset Morocco on penalties to reach the quarter-finals despite not winning a single match in regulation time throughout the tournament. Benin first competed in the Olympic Games in 1972 (as Dahomey) then at 1980 in the Moscow Olympic Games as Benin. As of the 2024 Paris Olympics, Benin is still yet to win an Olympic medal, though they do have some promising athletes in athletics, and made their first-ever appearance at a Winter Olympics in 2026.

Below are details of sports, sporting events and sports people related to Benin. Is there something missing? If you know of something that should be listed here, please let us know.

Popular sports of Benin

Benin Sporting Success

  • Quarter-finalists at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, the national team's best-ever tournament result, including a shock win over Morocco on penalties
  • Still without an Olympic medal after 13 Summer Games appearances, but competed at a first Winter Olympics in 2026

Great athletes from Benin

  • Steve Mounié (football) — national team captain and record goalscorer, plays club football in Europe
  • Yémi Apithy (fencing) — sabre fencer and Benin's flag bearer at the 2016 Rio Olympics, the country's most prominent international fencer

Benin Sports trivia

  • Benin's 2019 Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final run made them the first team in tournament history to reach the last eight without winning a single match in regulation time.

Benin at major events

Past sporting events hosted in Benin

  • 1996 African Men's Handball Championship, Cotonou
  • 2005 African Youth Championship (Football), where the Benin U-20 team finished third on home soil
  • 2009 UEMOA Tournament (regional domestic-league football), Cotonou
  • 2025 Professional Fighters League (PFL) Africa Finals, held at the Sofitel Dome, Cotonou, in December 2025

Upcoming sporting events in Benin

Annual sporting events held in Benin

  • Benin International — an international badminton tournament in the Badminton World Federation's Future Series, part of the Badminton Confederation of Africa circuit

Sporting Facilities in Benin

  • Stade de l'Amitié, Cotonou — capacity 35,000, Benin's largest stadium and traditional home of the national football team
  • Stade Charles de Gaulle, Porto-Novo — capacity 15,000, home to several Benin Premier League clubs and used by the national youth teams
  • As of 2026, Benin does not have a stadium currently approved by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to international standard, meaning the national team has had to play "home" World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers at neutral venues in neighbouring countries, including Ivory Coast