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World Cup - Angola

Football shows another side of Angola. "We have proved that Angola is not just about oil, war and poverty."

At their sixth attempt, Angola have finally succeeded in qualifying for a FIFA World Cup™ finals. Having first lined up to compete for a place at football's global gathering on a July night in 1984 - in the preliminary competition for Mexico 86 - the Angolan national team's longing has finally been satisfied after 21 years.
Drawn in Group 4 of the African Zone, Angola narrowly succeeded in snatching the sole ticket from beneath the noses of the all-powerful Nigerians. What is more, the manner in which 'Professor' Luis Oliveira Goncalves' charges negotiated their path to Germany was marked by great team spirit and resilience.

The Angolan campaign got off to an inauspicious start, to say the least. Forced to contest a preliminary match with minnows Chad, they suffered a shock 3-1 defeat in the first leg in November 2003, the aftermath of which saw their Brazilian coach Ismael Kurtz dismissed.

In the return game, their captain Akwa led Angola to a 2-0 victory under the stewardship of new coach Goncalves, who had been drafted in to salvage their campaign. Courtesy of this win, Angola went through to the group stage, but the luck of the draw placed them in Group 4 alongside Nigeria - immediately most people's favourites to qualify - as well as Algeria, Gabon, Zimbabwe and Rwanda.

Their prospects did not look too rosy, especially as the sum total of their previous exploits were two appearances at the CAF African Cup of Nations finals (South Africa 96 and Burkina Faso 98) and their 2001 CAF African U-20 Championship triumph and subsequent participation at the FIFA World Youth Championship in Argentina.

Read more at: FIFA World Cup - Yahoo!