The 2004 African Cup of Nations, known as the NOKIA African Cup of Nations, Tunisia 2004 for sponsorship reasons (also referred to as AFCON 2004 or CAN 2004) is the 24th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's football championship of Africa organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The tournament was hosted by Tunisia. The qualifying phase takes place from 7 September 2002 to 6 July 2003. Cameroon as title holder and Tunisia as host country automatically qualify for the final phase of the tournament. The competition takes place in six stadiums between 24 January and February 14, 2004. As in the 2002 edition, sixteen teams, divided into four groups each comprising four teams, take part in the competition. Tournament defending champions Cameroon eliminated in the quarter-finals after failing to win their match against Nigeria. Tunisia won their first title after defeating one-time champions Morocco 2–1 in the final, and Nigeria finished third after beating Mali 2–1 in the third place play-off. As champions, Tunisia qualified for the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup in Germany, as a representative of CAF. Host selection Bids : Benin / Togo Malawi / Zambia Tunisia Zimbabwe The organization of the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations was awarded to Tunisia on 4 September 2000 by the CAF Executive Committee meeting in Cairo, Egypt. Voters had a choice between four countries : Malawi and Zambia (joint bid), Tunisia and Zimbabwe. Benin and Togo were both also candidates at the start (joint bid) but withdrew on 4 September 2000 before the meeting. This edition was awarded to Tunisia which represented Africa in the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France by taking the majority of the votes of the CAF Executive Committee members which are 13 after its impressive success in the 1994 edition. This is the third time that Tunisia has hosted the African Cup after 1965 and 1994 Africa Cup of Nations. Sponsorship On 20 September 2003, in Tunis, Nokia acquired from CAF the right to be the "title sponsor" of the 24th edition, which is therefore officially called NOKIA Africa Cup of Nations, Tunisia 2004. Mascot To choose the tournament mascot, the organizing committee is launching a competition open to the entire Tunisian population. The only rules imposed, this mascot must be an eagle and must represent football, Africa and Tunisia. Of the fifty or so proposals submitted to the