A growing reputation for defence-first football was boosted by Trebor Mahtal’s Horoya side only conceding 6 goals en route to securing the Guinean title in 2029. Now armed with his Continental C license, Mahtal stood down from his role days before his contract expired, going in search of his fourth job and a new challenge.
Upon resigning, a few interesting roles were available and he swiftly got applications in. It took a few weeks for anything to materialise, but he eventually received a phone call from Benin and that was swiftly followed by an offer. He decided to delay that for a week to see what else became available, but nothing did, so Mahtal took a 1,400-mile journey southwest to a country on the central west coast of Africa.
Who Are Coton FC?
Coton Football Club de Ouidah is a professional club based in Ouidah, a city on the south coast of Benin with around 90,000 inhabitants. The club was originally founded in Natitingou, about 400 miles north of Ouidah, as Taneka FC in 1999, but changed name upon being acquired by Coton Sport Berlin, a business owned by the Cotton Development Company. The club plays at the Coton FC Stadium, which was built in 2026, alongside basic training and youth facilities and youth recruitment. The club competes in Beninese Ligue 1, which is ranked 57th in Africa so represents a fairly significant backward step in Mahtal’s career having just departed the 20th-ranked Guinean top tier.
Coton FC was invited to Benin’s top tier Ligue 1 for the first time in the 2021/22 campaign, when the league blended teams from the second two tiers. It won the national title for the first time in that season, going on to add more in the next two seasons. In-game, Coton won the title in 2026 and again in 2028, but only finished 4th last time around. The club is in a worrying financial position, £237k in the red with a transfer budget of just £4k and no wages available in the £4,500 budget, as well as £275k in outstanding debts. But 10 players left at the end of their contracts, freeing up around £1k in wages.
Mahtal inherits a squad that’s very thin on the ground, with only 14 players of first-team quality. That included not having a single centre back and having too many foreign players for a league that only allows 3 in the starting 11. The best player at the club was left back Rabiou Sankamao, along with Senegalese midfielder Abdourahmane Ba, winger Chérif-Dine Mama, midfielders Hamza Alidou, Zoulkaneri Toukourou and Abdoul Kader Koné, who’ll retrain as a centre back, striker Branly Hounzan and Nigerian goalkeeper Adeyinka Adewale. Mahtal added to that by snapping up centre backs Adéchinin Latoundji and the dubiously named Bachirou Dodji on a free from Dynamo d’Abomey and for £5k from Hodio.
Mahtal saw the strength of the side in central midfield, so he used that to settle on a fairly straightforward 4-3-3. Toukourou and playmaker Hamza Alidou will play in behind Ba, who’s given freedom to push on in support of Hounzan, with Mama given a little more licence to attack on the right than youngster Bob Abalonorou on the left.
Getting Started in Benin
Surprisingly, Coton FC have been made the bookies’ favourites to win Ligue 1 with title odds of 11/5, followed by Buffles FC (9/2), Dadje FC (5/1), Loto FC (6/1), ASVO (12/1) and holders Dynamo d’Abomey (18/1).
Like in Guinea, Mahtal had a long wait before his first match in Benin, with the season not kicking off until mid-October. And, after going undefeated last season, his Coton reign began with a poor performance as they lost 2-1 at Djeffa and his second wasn’t much better as they failed to score from 22 shots in a 0-0 at home to Loto. Mahtal pushed Alidou forward into midfield as they took on US Cavaliers and they got the elusive first win as Hounzan’s tidy finish secured a 1-0 win. And they were much improved at Tonnere as an early Abalnorou goal got them started before Mama’s double secured a 3-0 success.
Just as it seemed they’d turned a corner, Coton suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat at home to Damissa then lost 3-2 at Buffles, which left them 12 points off top spot after 7 games. They finally got up and running with a good display as Mama and Ba bagged braces in a 5-1 thumping of Dadje, before Hounzan bagged consecutive braces of his own to down Béké and ASPAC 2-1 and 3-1 away. But Mama was the real star of the team, as he scored a superb hat trick in a 4-2 victory over Hodio then both goals in a 2-0 win at Ayéma.
Mama Shines as Coton FC Hunt Down Unbeatable Loto
Like in Guinea, there was no Beninese cup, so the focus remained fully on the league as Coton headed into 2030 in 2nd place, trailing Loto, whose only failure to win was at Coton, by 6 points having played a game more. A month-long break took its toll as a terrible performance saw Coton lose 1-0 at home to surprise title challengers Sobemap and draw 23-2 at Cotonou. They also weren’t great at home to AS Dragons, but a late goal from striker Gael Avocevou nicked a 3-2 win but a 1-0 defeat at Dynamo left them 13 points back from Loto, who still hadn’t lost.
Coton responded as Abalanorou’s hat trick and a superb 4 assists from right back Hussaini Abdullahi led a 6-2 thumping of ASVO. That fired them back into form with a 4-1 win over ASPAC, while Loto finally lost after 18 games to leave Coton 8 points back. The uptick in form continued, including Hounzan’s late strike nicking a 1-0 at Sobemap. And suddenly a lead that had been 13 points was whittled down to just 2 as Abalanorou and Mama inspired a 3-0 win at Damissa before a 3-1 win at Kraké – while Loto lost two on the bounce.
A week later, the remarkable comeback was complete as Coton FC hit the top of Ligue 1 for the first time as Mama’s brace led a 3-0 win over Djeffa while Loto drew 3-3 at Dynamo. And Coton extended their lead to 2 points as another Mama double inspired a 3-0 win over Béké as Loto drew 0-0 at Djeffa, which took them to 1 win in 6 games.
Gameday 30 – Hodio FC (15th, away): Coton continued their impressive form thanks to Ba’s delicious 20-yard volley after 20 minutes. Loto got back to form with a 4-1 win over Cotonou and Sobemap effectively dropped out of the title race with a draw at Damissa.
Gameday 31 – Ayéma FC (14th, home): Coton gave up their advantage as a poor defensive display led to a 2-2 draw, while Loto won 3-1 at Damissa to join them on 70 points with 3 games remaining.
Gameday 32 – Loto (2nd, away): A potential title decider saw Coton travel to Loto locked on points and a 3 goal difference between the sides. Loto went ahead straight from the kick off, but Coton responded with a couple of close-range finishes from Avocevou. But they couldn’t hold on, and a 66th-minute equaliser kept the sides tied on points going into the final 2 games.
Gameday 33 – Dynamo d’Aborney (6th, home): Coton obviously lost Adewale to a knee ligament sprain ahead of the final 2 games, and his replacement Dava Agossa had a nightmare debut in a dreadful 3-1 defeat. Loto won 1-0 at Tonnerre to go back to the top of the league by 2 points going into the final day.
Gameday 34 – ASVO ( away): Coton made a trip to mid-table ASVO as Loto entertained another mid-table side US Cavaliers. Coton missed three absolute sitters in a dominant first half hour, before Mama opened the scoring with a wonderful chip. But Loto were already 2-0 up, so the title race was done and dusted. It looked even more over as they managed to concede straight after halftime and they somehow went on to lose 3-1in a shocking second half display.
Those two defeats saw Coton slip to a fairly disappointing 3rd place, finishing 6 points back from champions Loto, who won their third title with a new record low points tally. Coton wrapped up with 22 wins, 5 draws and 7 defeats, scoring a league-high 71 but conceding 37. Mama was the 4th top scorer with a new club record 19 in 32, well behind Cotonou’s Loth Wanvoun, who hit a new league record 26 in 32, and had the most shots and shots on target (125 and 75), while Ba led the way with 15 assists.
Should Mahtal Stay or Go?
Mahtal faced a dilemma whether to stick with Coton, who had a mass of players running out of contract and fairly concerning finances, or, with his contract expiring at the end of June 2030, jump ship and look for a new opportunity. He tested the water elsewhere, applying for a couple of vacancies and attending interviews with sides in Eritrea and Libya, before eventually deciding to put pen to paper on a new one-year deal.
He set about rebuilding the squad, selling Koné to Ghana’s All Blacks for £8,500 and allowing 10 players to depart on frees, including Hounzan, Adewale and Agossa, who Mahtal blamed for their league bottlejob, which left him with just 13 first team players. He snapped up 6ft 5in goalkeeper Loukmane Farou on a free and striker Soumaila Hounkpé for £20k from Cotonou. And he bulked out the squad with promising midfielder Yves-Francois Kola from £8k from AS Dragons, right back Ronaldo Tchinounsé for £8k from Dynamo, Senegalese centre back Dembou Samabaly on a free from Séwé, striker Stanislas Abdou on a free from Buffles and left back Gabriel Bonney on loan from Ashanti Gold.
With the squad rebuilt, Mahtal implemented a tactical tweak, moving Sankamao up to the left wing ahead of Bonney as a wing back, Kola retraining as a centre back and 21-year-old Samson Arounda stepping up at right back.
Striving for Coton Improvement
The Beninese bookies made Coton favourites to life Ligue 1 with title odds of 12/5 followied by champions Loto (3/1), Buffles (7/2), Dadje (15/2), ASVO (11/1) and Sobemap (25/1). And the favourites began well as Bonney scored the only goal on debut at Cavaliers, before Hounkpé and Kola scored their first goals in a 3-0 victory at home to Béké. But they lot 7 players to international duty and lost 1-0 at Sobemap but responded in style to thrash ASPAC 5-1 led by a Mama brace and went top of the league for the first time as Hounkpé’s strike downed Dadje 1-0. The good start continued, including Hounkpé’s superb hat trick securing a 3-1 win at home to Panthéres, and they went into a month-long break with a 3-point lead over Dadje and Dynamo, with holders Loto 9 point back in 7th.
The league campaign resumed with a trip to Kraké, and an early Sanakamao goal got them going before Abalonorou sealed a 2-0 win to move Coton 5 points clear. The same result followed at home to Espoir before losing 2-0 at ASVO despite having 21 shots to 5. Mahtal tweaked the approach a little after that result, going a little more direct with a higher tempo, and that worked a treat as a Sankamao brace led a 3-0 success at Djeffa before Ba, Hounkpé and Mama secured the same scoreline at home to Damissa. Hounkpé scored both goals in a 2-0 win at Panthéres to restore their 5-point lead and scored the opener in another 2-0 over AS Dragons.
With Coton in pole position, Mahtal further strengthened his attack by bringing in his former San Pédro striker Ouérmi Camara, who comes in as the best player at the club, on loan. That forced a change in formation with Camara moving up top alongside Hounkpé, who drops in as an AM out of possession. Camara hit the ground running, heading home Mama’s cross either side of Ba and Mama strikes in a 3-1 victory at Béké and scoring on his home debut as Mama provided an assist hat-trick in a 3-1 win over Kraké and bagging a hat trick in a 5-2 thrashing of Espoir.
The formation switch continued to work wonders as Coton scored goals for fun, while Dadje had kept 6 consecutive clean sheets to stay 8 points back with a game in hand. That teed up a title showdown at Dadje in mid-March, and the defensive side maintained their run with a 1-0 victory – that’s 7 clean sheets on the bounce! They recovered with early Hounkpé and Camara strikes earning a 3-2 win over Sobemap before Camara’s brace secured a 3-1 win at Cotonou – while Dadje won two more games with clean sheets. That kept Coton 5 points clear having played a game more with 5 games remaining.
Game 30 – Loto (4th, away): Coton began the run-in with a trip to holders Loto, who’d improved in the second half of the season. The hosts scored their first shot after half an hour but, after an angry teamtalk, Camara levelled up before a late Avocevou header nicked a 2-1 winner. Dadje conceded for the first time in 9 games, but won 3-2 at Cavaliers and then 4-0 at ASVO in their game in hand to move just 2 points behind.
Game 31 – Ayéma (14th, home): A more convincing performance began well as Hounkpé scored inside 5 minutes. Toukourou quickly doubled the lead before Camara sealed a 3-1 win after an hour. Dadje won 7-0 at Panthéres to keep the gap at 2 points and move to 15 consecutive wins and no defeats since mid-January.
Game 32 – ASPAC (11th, away): The good form continued as Mama laid on first half goals for Hounkpé and Bonney before another Camara strike secured a 3-1 win. Dadje also won 3-1 at home to Dragons.
Game 33 – Djeffa (16th, home): Coton had a shot at the title if they won and Dadje finally dropped points, which seemed unlikely. They lost Bonney to injury and went behind early on, but the strikeforce of Hounkpé and Camara completed a comeback to win 2-1. Later that day, Dadje recorded yet another clean sheet… but didn’t score at Buffles.
Coton FC were Champions of Benin and lifted their 6th Ligue 1 title!
Coton celebrated in style as a Camara brace led a 4-0 win at Damissa, which helped them win the league by 6 points. They finished on 87 points after 28 wins, 3 draws and 3 defeats, scoring 80 and conceding 24. However, Dadje will be gutted not to have won the league on 81 points after finishing the season with a 20-game unbeaten run and conceding just 20 all season. Hounkpé was the 2nd top scorer with 21 in 34, while Camara came in 10th with 16 in just 15 games and got a league-high 7.65 rating. Mama led the assists with an impressive 20, including 12 in the final 9 games, followed by Ba’s 16.
Another African League Ticked Off
Mahtal collected his fourth African league title, adding the Beninese title to those won in Zambia, Ivory Coast and Guinea. And he believed his decision to stay at Coton had been rewarded by an exceptional squad. Mama was again their man man with 11 goals and 20 assists in 34 games, while the strikeforce was deadly as Hounkpé scored 21 in 34 and Camara racked up 16 in 15. Ba also impressed with 16 assists and 6 goals and Bonney delivered 8 assists.
But success in Benin meant it was time for Mahtal to depart after 2 years at Coton. Where would he end up as he went in search of his 5th club on his African adventure? Join us on Monday to find out!
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