The 1997 African Cup Winners' Cup football club tournament was won by Étoile Sportive du Sahel in two-legged final victory against FAR Rabat. This was the twenty-third season that the tournament took place for the winners of each African country's domestic cup. Forty-one sides entered the competition. Teams from Niger and the Central African Republic were disqualified because their federations were in debt to CAF. Club 'S' Namakia from Madagascar withdrew before the 1st leg of the preliminary round, Maxaquene from Mozambique withdrew before the 1st leg of the first round while Racing Bafoussam from Cameroon was disqualified for not showing up in time for the 1st leg. The last team to withdraw from the competition was Dragons from Zaire before the 1st leg of the second round.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | February – 6 December 1997 |
| Teams | 41 (from 1 confederation) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  ES Sahel (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  FAR Rabat |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 66 |
| Goals scored | 173 (2.62 per match) |
Jomo Cosmos replaced Orlando Pirates, who were admitted to the Champions League for being the champions of both the league and cup competitions in South Africa.
Preliminary round edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Bata Bullets 
|
2–2 (a) |  Kiyovu Sport
|
1–0 | 1–2 |
Awassa Flour Mill 
|
0–5 |  Uganda Electricity Board
|
0–2 | 0–3 |
MP Tigers 
|
1–1 (a) |  Eleven Men in Flight
|
1–1 | 0–0 |
Lerotholi Polytechnic 
|
2–1 |  Township Rollers
|
2–0 | 0–1 |
Club S Namakia 
|
w/o |  Red Star FC
|
— | — |
Renaissance FC 
|
7–1 |  Akonangui FC
|
3–0 | 4–1 |
Sigara SC 
|
1–3 |  Dynamos FC
|
1–0 | 0–3 |
UNB FC 
|
dq1 |  unknown
|
— | — |
Étoile Filante 
|
dq1 |  Sahel SC
|
— | — |
- Notes
- 1 Sahel SC and Central African Republic representative club disqualified because their federations were in debt to CAF.
First round edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Al-Merreikh 
|
0–3 |  El Mansoura SC
|
0–1 | 0–2 |
| UNB FC
|
0–6 |  Julius Berger
|
0–3 | 0–3 |
Scouts Club 
|
3–4 |  SS Saint-Louisienne
|
2–1 | 1–3 |
| Red Star FC
|
w/o |  CD Maxaquene
|
— | — |
| Eleven Men in Flight
|
0–6 |  Jomo Cosmos
|
0–3 | 0–3 |
| Bata Bullets
|
0–2 | Dynamos FC
|
0–1 | 0–1 |
Mumias Sugar FC 
|
0–2 | El Mokawloon
|
0–0 | 0–2 |
| Lerotholi Polytechnic
|
0–6 |  Nchanga Rangers
|
0–1 | 0–5 |
| FAR Rabat
|
4–2 |  Real Bamako
|
4–1 | 0–1 |
FC 105 Libreville 
|
2–1 |  Progresso do Sambizanga
|
2–0 | 0–1 |
| Étoile Filante
|
3–4 | ES Sahel
|
3–0 | 0–4 |
ASFAG 
|
0–2 |  Hearts of Oak
|
0–0 | 0–2 |
US Gorée 
|
2–4 |  MC Oran
|
1–0 | 1–4 |
| Renaissance FC
|
3–7 |  AS Dragons
|
2–1 | 1–6 |
Vita Club Mokanda 
|
1–2 |  SO Armée
|
0–0 | 1–2 |
| Uganda Electricity Board
|
dq1 |  RC Bafoussam
|
— | — |
- Notes
- 1 RC Bafoussam were disqualified for not showing up in time for the 1st leg.
Second round edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Julius Berger
|
0–2 | El Mansoura SC
|
0–0 | 0–2 |
| Red Star FC
|
0–5 | SS Saint-Louisienne
|
0–2 | 0–3 |
| Dynamos FC
|
2–3 | Jomo Cosmos
|
2–1 | 0–2 |
| Nchanga Rangers
|
2–4 | El Mokawloon
|
2–1 | 0–3 |
| FC 105 Libreville
|
2–2 (3–4 p) | FAR Rabat
|
2–0 | 0–2 |
| Hearts of Oak
|
3–6 | ES Sahel
|
2–2 | 1–4 |
| Umeme FC1
|
2–3 | MC Oran
|
2–0 | 0–3 |
| SO Armée
|
w/o | AS Dragons
|
— | — |
- Notes
- 1 Uganda Electricity Board FC changed it name to Umeme FC.
Quarter-finals edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Mansoura SC
|
5–2 | Jomo Cosmos
|
3–0 | 2–2 |
| El Mokawloon
|
2–4 | ES Sahel
|
2–2 | 0–2 |
| SS Saint-Louisienne
|
3–3 (a) | SO Armée
|
2–0 | 1–3 |
| FAR Rabat
|
3–1 | MC Oran
|
2–0 | 1–1 |
Semi-finals edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ES Sahel
|
5–4 | El Mansoura SC
|
3–0 | 2–4 |
| FAR Rabat
|
5–2 | SS Saint-Louisienne
|
3–0 | 2–2 |
Final edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ES Sahel
|
2–1 | FAR Rabat
|
2–0 | 0–1 |
First leg edit
| ES Sahel | 2 – 0 | FAR Rabat |
|---|---|---|
Mhedhebi  40'Ben Younes 76' (pen.) |
Second leg edit
Champions edit
| 1997 African Cup Winners' Cup Winners |
|---|
 ES Sahel First title |