The 1990 African Cup of Nations was the 17th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the football championship of Africa (CAF).

Algeria won its first championship, beating Nigeria in the final 1–0.

The 8 qualified teams are: The competition was played in two venues in Algiers and Annaba.

If two or more teams finished level on points after completion of the group matches, the following tie-breakers were used to determine the final ranking:

Antar Osmani Ali Benhalima André Kana-Biyik Arsène Hobou Samuel Chomba Djamel Amani Rabah Madjer Tahar Chérif El-Ouazzani Moses Kpakor Djamel Menad Webster Chikabala There were 30 goals scored in 16 matches, for an average of 1.88 goals per match.