The Madagascar national football team, nicknamed Barea after the island's zebu, is the national team of Madagascar and is controlled by the Malagasy Football Federation. It has never qualified for the finals of the World Cup. It took part in its first Africa Cup of Nations in 2019. Among its biggest wins was a 1–0 home victory over Egypt in the qualification rounds of the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations until being surpassed by a recent 2–0 win over Nigeria in the group stage of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. Reflecting the official name of the country at the time, the team was known as the Malagasy Republic national football team between 1958 and 1975.
History
Madagascar made its debut in 1947 in a home match against Mauritius which was lost 2–1. The game was part of a Triangulaire tournament between Madagascar, Mauritius and Reunion. Madagascar's second match was at home to Reunion and saw their first ever win, 4–2. The triangular tournament was staged every year until 1958, and Madagascar's highest-scoring game was on 13 July 1953 when they beat Reunion 6–4 at home. Their worst loss was on 31 July 1952 when they lost 7–0 to Mauritius in Reunion.
Madagascar played against opposition different from Mauritius or Reunion for the first time in 1960, as part of a tournament between French-speaking nations held on the island. In their first match on 15 April 1960 they beat the Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) 6–1. The second game was a quarter-final against France's amateur side on 17 April and was lost 2–1. On 19 April Madagascar beat the Congo 8–1 in the third-place play-off.
In April 1963, Madagascar entered another competition for French-speaking countries, this time in Senegal, and was placed in a group with Dahomey (now Benin), Liberia and Chad. They opened with a 1–0 win over Dahomey on 11 April, and then beat Chad 2–1 on 13 April and Liberia 3–1 on 15 April. In the semi-finals, Madagascar were beaten 2–1 by Tunisia on 19 April, and then lost 4–1 to France's amateur team in the third-place play-off on 21 April.
In September 1963 the Triangulaire between Madagascar, Reunion and Mauritius was reinstated for the first time since 1958. On 15 September they beat Reunion 6–1 at home, and on 18 September drew 1–1 to Mauritius in a home game which was abandoned.
On 16 October 2018, Madagascar qualified to the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in their history, after they won 1–0 against Equatorial Guinea. During their debut match against Guinea on 22 June 2019, Anicet Abel scored Madagascar's first-ever AFCON goal and secured their first point of the competition with a 2–2 draw against Guinea. The team defeated Burundi in their second match and followed it up with a 2–0 victory over the Super Eagles of Nigeria to top Group B. Then Madagascar advanced to quarter-finals after beating DR Congo in the round of 16. The team's successful performance was coined by pundits as the Iceland of Africa, resembling the shockingly successful debut of Iceland in UEFA Euro 2016. However, Madagascar's dream ended abruptly after suffering a 0–3 defeat at the hand of another former champion, Tunisia.
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
2025
2026
Coaching staff
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|Head coach
| Corentin Martins
|-
|Assistant coaches
| Andry Razakandrianaina<br> Hervé Andrianasimbola
|-
|Goalkeeping coach
| Nirina Rakotobololona
|-
|Fitness coach
| Michel Rajaonarinantenaina
|-
|Match analyst
| Flavien Andriamanomenjanahary
|-
|Performance coach
| Alphonse Rakotomanatsinoro
|-
|Team doctors
| Dr. Stéphane Rajaonaribololona<br> Dr. Hugo Rakotomalalanantenaina
|-
|Physiotherapists
| Gaël Njivarabesananteinaina<br> Christophe Rakotonantenaina<br> Philippe Ravelonomenjanahary<br> Razakaniaina Andriarakotobololona
|-
|Team coordinator
| Faneva Andriatsima
|-
|Technical director
| Éric Rabésandratana
|}
Coaching history
- Peter Schnittger (1978–1985)
- Justin Rasoloharimahefa (1994)
- Claude "Ntsoa" Ravelomanantsoa (–2001)
- Vincent Randriamirado (2001)
- Jeremia Randriambololona (2001)
- Hans Heiniger (2002–2003)
- Hervé Arsène (2007–2008)
- Mickael Nivoson Andrianasy (2008)
- Jeremia Randriambololona (2008)
- Jean-Paul Rabier (2010–2011)
- Mosa (2011)
- Frank Rajaonarisamba (2011–2012)
- Auguste Raux (2012–2014)
- Frank Rajaonarisamba (2014–2016)
- Auguste Raux (2016–2017)
- Nicolas Dupuis (2017–2021)
- Éric Rabésandratana (2021–2022)
- Nicolas Dupuis (2022–2023)
- Romuald Rakotondrabe (2023-present)
Players
Current squad
The following players were called up for the friendly matches against Morocco and Uganda on 2 and 8 June 2026, respectively.
Caps and goals updated after the match against Equatorial Guinea on 31 March 2026.
Recent call-ups
The following players have been called up for Madagascar in the last 12 months and are still eligible to represent.
- <sup>DEC</sup> Player refused to join the team after the call-up.
- <sup>INJ</sup> Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
- <sup>PRE</sup> Preliminary squad.
- <sup>RET</sup> Player has retired from international football.
- <sup>SUS</sup> Suspended from the national team.
Records
:Players in bold are still active with Madagascar.
Most appearances
thumb|200px|right|Paulin Voavy is Madagascar's top goalscorer and their most capped player.
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!width=30px|Rank
! style="width:175px;"|Player
!width=50px|Caps
!width=50px|Goals
! style="width:100px;"|Career
|-
| 1 ||align=left| Paulin Voavy || 67 || 15 || 2007–2022
|-
| 2 ||align=left| Mamisoa Razafindrakoto || 63 || 0 || 1998–2011
|-
| 3 ||align=left| Njiva Rakotoharimalala || 56 || 14 || 2014–present
|-
| 4 ||align=left| Gervais Randrianarisoa || 52 || 0 || 2005–2022
|-
| rowspan=2|5 ||align=left| Carolus Andriamatsinoro || 49 || 12 || 2009–2024
|-
|align=left| Jimmy Radafison || 49 || 0 || 2000–2011
|-
| rowspan=4|7 ||align=left| Ibrahim Amada || 47 || 4 || 2008–2024
|-
|align=left| Faneva Imà Andriatsima || 47 || 14 || 2003–2019
|-
|align=left| Lalaina Nomenjanahary || 47 || 5 || 2006–2021
|-
|align=left| Eric-Julien Rakotondrabe || 47 || 0 || 1999–2011
|-
|}
Top goalscorers
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!width=30px|Rank
! style="width:175px;"|Player
!width=50px|Goals
!width=50px|Caps
!width=50px|Ratio
! style="width:100px;"|Career
|-
| 1 ||align=left| Paulin Voavy || 15 || 67 || || 2007–2022
|-
| rowspan=2|2 ||align=left| Faneva Imà Andriatsima || 14 || 47 || || 2005–2019
|-
|align=left| Njiva Rakotoharimalala || 14 || 56 || || 2014–present
|-
| 4 ||align=left| Carolus Andriamatsinoro || 12 || 49 || || 2009–2024
|-
| 5 ||align=left| Harry Randrianaivo || 11 || 21 || || 1990–2003
|-
| 6 ||align=left| Ruphin Menakely || 10 || 25 || || 1998–2003
|-
| rowspan=3|7 ||align=left| Sarivahy Vombola || 8 || 30 || || 2011–2017
|-
|align=left| Rado Rasoanaivo || 8 || 40 || || 1992–2003
|-
|align=left| Rayan Raveloson || 8 || 42 || || 2019–present
|-
| 10 ||align=left| Tsiry Randriatsiferana || 7 || 31 || || 2022–present
|-
|}
Competitive record
FIFA World Cup
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
!colspan=9|FIFA World Cup record
!rowspan=39|
!colspan=8|Qualification record
|-
!Year
!Round
!Position
!
!
!*
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
|-
|1930 to 1958
|colspan=8|Part of
|colspan=8|Part of
|-
!colspan=9|as
!colspan=8|as
|-
| 1962
|colspan=8|Not a FIFA member
|colspan=8|Not a FIFA member
|-
|1966 and 1970
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|-
| 1974
|colspan=8|Withdrew
|colspan=8|Withdrew
|-
!colspan=9|as
!colspan=8|as
|-
| 1978
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|-
| 1982
|colspan=8 rowspan=2|Did not qualify
|2
|0
|1
|1
|3
|4
|details
|-
| 1986
|2
|1
|0
|1
|1
|1
|details
|-
| 1990
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|-
| 1994
|colspan=8 rowspan=9|Did not qualify
|4
|3
|0
|1
|7
|3
|details
|-
| 1998
|2
|0
|1
|1
|3
|4
|details
|-
| 2002
|10
|3
|0
|7
|7
|16
|details
|-
| 2006
|2
|0
|1
|1
|3
|4
|details
|-
| 2010
|8
|3
|3
|2
|12
|9
|details
|-
| 2014
|2
|1
|0
|1
|2
|3
|details
|-
| 2018
|4
|1
|2
|1
|7
|7
|details
|-
| 2022
|6
|1
|1
|4
|4
|9
|details
|-
| 2026
|10
|6
|1
|3
|17
|12
|details
|-
| 2030
|colspan=8 rowspan=2|To be determined
|colspan=6 rowspan=2|To be determined
|details
|-
| 2034
|details
|-
!Total||–||||–||–||–||–||–||–
!52||19||10||23||66||72||–
|}
Africa Cup of Nations
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
!colspan=9|Africa Cup of Nations record
! rowspan="40" width="1%" |
!colspan=7|Qualification record
|-
!Year
!Round
!Position
!
!
!*
!
!
!
!
!
!*
!
!
!
!
|-
| 1957||colspan=8 rowspan=2|Part of || colspan="7" rowspan="2" |Part of
|-
| 1959
|-
| 1962||rowspan=2 colspan=8|Not affiliated to CAF|| colspan="7" rowspan="2" |Not affiliated to CAF
|-
| 1963
|-
| 1965
|colspan=8 rowspan=3|Did not enter
| colspan="7" rowspan="3" |Did not enter
|-
| 1968
|-
| 1970
|-
| 1972
|rowspan=2 colspan=8|Did not qualify
|2
|1
|0
|1
|3
|5
|details
|-
| 1974
|2
|1
|0
|1
|3
|4
|details
|-
| 1976
|colspan=8|Withdrew
| colspan="7" |Withdrew
|-
| 1978
|colspan=8|Did not enter
| colspan="7" |Did not enter
|-
| 1980
|rowspan=5 colspan=8|Did not qualify
|2
|1
|0
|1
|3
|6
|details
|-
| 1982
|4
|2
|1
|1
|4
|7
|details
|-
| 1984
|4
|1
|1
|2
|3
|4
|details
|-
| 1986
|2
|0
|0
|2
|2
|6
|details
|-
| 1988
|2
|1
|0
|1
|2
|3
|details
|-
| 1990
|colspan=8|Withdrew
| colspan="7" |Withdrew
|-
| 1992
|colspan="8"|Did not qualify
|5
|2
|2
|1
|3
|2
|details
|-
| 1994
|colspan="8"|Did not enter
| colspan="7" |Did not enter
|-
| 1996
|colspan="8"|Withdrew during qualifiers
| colspan="7" |Withdrew during qualifiers
|-
| 1998
|colspan="8"|Banned for withdrawal in 1996
| colspan="7" |Banned for withdrawal in 1996
|-
| 2000
|rowspan=10 colspan="8"|Did not qualify
|8
|2
|3
|3
|9
|12
|details
|-
| 2002
|8
|2
|2
|4
|7
|8
|details
|-
| 2004
|4
|2
|0
|2
|2
|8
|details
|-
| 2006
|2
|0
|1
|1
|3
|4
|details
|-
| 2008
|4
|0
|0
|4
|0
|14
|details
|-
| 2010
|8
|3
|3
|2
|12
|9
|details
|-
| 2012
|6
|0
|1
|5
|4
|14
|details
|-
| 2013
|2
|0
|0
|2
|1
|7
|details
|-
| 2015
|2
|1
|0
|1
|2
|2
|details
|-
| 2017
|6
|0
|3
|3
|5
|12
|details
|-
| 2019
|Quarter-finals||6th||5||2||2||1||7||7
|8
|5
|1
|2
|12
|10
|details
|-
| 2021
|rowspan="3" colspan="8"|Did not qualify
|6
|2
|2
|2
|9
|9
|details
|-
| 2023
|6
|0
|3
|3
|1
|9
|details
|-
| 2025
|6
|0
|2
|4
|4
|8
|details
|-
| 2027
| colspan="8" rowspan="2" |To be determined
| colspan="7" rowspan="2" |To be determined
|-
| 2029
|-
!Total||Quarter-finals||1/35||5||2||2||1||7||7
!99||26||25||48||94||163||–
|}
African Nations Championship
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
!colspan=9|African Nations Championship record
! rowspan="11" width="1%" |
!colspan=7|Qualification record
|-
!Year
!Round
!Position
!
!
!*
!
!
!
!
!
!*
!
!
!
!
|-
|| 2009
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|-
| 2011
|colspan="8"|Did not qualify
|2
|1
|0
|1
|0
|2
|Details
|-
| 2014
|colspan="8" rowspan="2"|Did not enter
|colspan="8" rowspan="2"|Did not enter
|-
| 2016
|-
| 2018
|colspan="8" rowspan="2"|Did not qualify
|6
|3
|2
|1
|6
|3
|Details
|-
| 2020
|4
|2
|0
|2
|4
|5
|Details
|- style="background:#cc9966;"
| 2022
|Third place
|3rd
|5
|4
|0
|1
|9
|3
|4
|3
|1
|0
|6
|1
|Details
|- style="background:silver;"
| 2024
|Runners-up
|2nd
|7
|3
|2
|2
|9
|7
|2
|1
|0
|1
|2
|1
|Details
|-
!Total||Runners-up||2/7||12||7||0||3||18||10
!18||10||3||5||18||12||—
|}
African Games
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
!colspan=8|African Games record
!width=1% rowspan=10|
!colspan=7|Qualification record
|-
!Year
!Result
!Pld
!W
!D
!L
!GF
!GA
!Pld
!W
!D
!L
!GF
!GA
!GR
|-
| 1965||8th||3||0||0||3||0||13||2||1||0||1||6||3||details
|-
| 1973||colspan=7 rowspan=2|Withdrew||colspan=7 rowspan=2|Withdrew
|-
| 1978
|-
| 1987||6th||3||1||0||2||4||5||2||1||0||1||3||3||details
|-
| 1991 to 2015||colspan=7|U-23 Tournament||colspan=7|U-23 Tournament
|-
| 2019 – present||colspan=7|U-20 Tournament||colspan=7|U-20 Tournament
|-
!Total||2/4||6||1||0||5||4||18||4||2||0||2||9||6||—
|}
Indian Ocean Island Games
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
!colspan=9|Indian Ocean Island Games record
|-
!Year
!Round
!Position
!
!
!*
!
!
!
|-
| 1979
|colspan=8|Did not enter
|- style="background:#9acdff;"
| 1985
|Fourth place
|4th
|2
|1
|0
|1
|2
|3
|- style="background:gold;"
|style="border: 3px solid red"| 1990
|Champions
|1st
|4
|3
|1
|0
|12
|1
|- style="background:gold;"
| 1993
|Champions
|1st
|4
|4
|0
|0
|10
|2
|- style="background:silver;"
| 1998
|Runners-up
|2nd
|4
|3
|1
|0
|10
|3
|-
| 2003
|Group stage
|5th
|2
|0
|1
|1
|2
|4
|- style="background:silver;"
|style="border: 3px solid red"| 2007
|Runners-up
|2nd
|4
|2
|2
|0
|7
|0
|-
| 2011
|Group stage
|7th
|2
|0
|1
|1
|2
|3
|- style="background:#9acdff;"
| 2015
|Fourth place
|4th
|5
|1
|1
|3
|6
|8
|-
| 2019
|Group stage
|5th
|2
|0
|2
|0
|2
|2
|-
|- style="background:gold;"
|style="border: 3px solid red"| 2023
|Champions
|1st
|4
|3
|1
|0
|7
|3
|-
!Total
!3 Titles
!10/11
!33
!17
!10
!6
!60
!29
|}
COSAFA Cup
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
!colspan=9|COSAFA Cup record
|-
!Year||Round||Result||Pld||W||D||L||GF||GA
|-
|2000
|colspan=8 rowspan=2|Excluded
|-
|2001
|-
|2002
|Quarter-finals
|5th
|2
|1
|1
|0
|3
|2
|-
|2003
|Quarter-finals
|7th
|2
|1
|0
|1
|2
|3
|-
|2004
|Round 1
|11th
|1
|0
|0
|1
|0
|2
|-
|2005
|Round 1
|10th
|1
|0
|0
|1
|0
|2
|-
|2006
|Round 1
|13th
|2
|0
|0
|2
|0
|4
|-
|2007
|Round 1
|8th
|2
|1
|0
|1
|5
|1
|- style="background:#9acdff;"
| 2008
|Fourth place
|4th
|6
|2
|2
|2
|6
|7
|-
| 2009
|colspan=8 rowspan=2|Did not enter
|-
| 2013
|-style="background:#c96;colspan=8
| 2015
|colspan=1|Third place
|3rd
|6
|4
|1
|1
|11
|7
|-
| 2016
|Group stage
|11th
|3
|1
|1
|1
|1
|1
|-
| 2017
|Group stage
|9th
|3
|2
|1
|0
|6
|1
|-style="background:#9acdff;"
| 2018
|Fourth place
|4th
|6
|2
|2
|2
|4
|4
|-
| 2019
|colspan=8 rowspan=1|Did not enter
|-
| 2021
|colspan=8 rowspan=1|Did not enter
|-
| 2022
|Quarter-finals
|5th
|2
|0
|0
|2
|4
|1
|-
| 2023
|colspan=8 rowspan=1|Did not enter
|-
| 2024
|colspan=8 rowspan=1|Did not enter
|-
|-style="background:#9acdff;"
| 2025
|Fourth place
|4th
|4
|1
|1
|2
|3
|6
|-
!Total
!Third place
!13/24
!40
!15
!9
!16
!45
!41
|}
Honours
Continental
- African Nations Championship
- Runners-up (1): 2024
- Third place (1): 2022
Regional
- COSAFA Cup
- Third place (1): 2015
- Indian Ocean Island Games
- Gold medal (3): 1990, 1993, 2023
- Silver medal (2): 1998, 2007
- Indian Ocean Games Triangulaire
- Champions (3): 1955, 1958, 1963
- Runners-up (7): 1947, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1956
- Third place (3): 1950, 1954, 1957
Summary
{| class="wikitable" width=30% style="font-size:90%; text-align:center"
|-
!Competition !! !! !! !!Total
|-
|align=left|CAF African Nations Championship
|0||1||1||2
|-
!Total!!0!!1!!1!!2
|}
References
External links
- Malagasy Football Federation
- Madagascar at CAF
- Madagascar at FIFA
- Madagascar national football team picture