Afcon 2025: A Year Away – What to Know

With Saturday marking precisely one year until the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) commences, the group stage draw is slated for late January. Morocco will host the continental tournament for the second time, having previously done so in 1988, with Achraf Hakimi aspiring to help his nation claim the trophy on home soil. Although the qualifying rounds concluded in November, several aspects of Africa’s premier sporting event remain unaddressed. BBC Sport Africa outlines the confirmed and unconfirmed details concerning next year’s football celebration. The schedule for the biennial competition has been altered once more. The Confederation of African Football (Caf), the organizers, face a “scheduling nightmare” due to the packed club and international fixture calendars. A commitment made in 2017 to hold Afcon in mid-year has again been disregarded, following the pattern of the past two editions which took place in January and February. The 2025 Afcon is now scheduled to begin on 21 December next year and conclude on 18 January 2026. This will be the first time the tournament spans the Christmas and New Year period, a situation that could potentially lead to complications. The complete fixture list has not yet been released, meaning there is still a possibility of matches being played on Christmas Day. The initial round of group stage games at the 2023 tournament extended over five days. Cameroon’s goalkeeper, Andre Onana, might miss several Manchester United matches, depending on his commitments with the Indomitable Lions at Afcon. The date for clubs to release players, a perennial point of contention, is still to be determined because Afcon 2025 falls outside the previously agreed Fifa international windows. The European Club Association, representing over 700 professional teams on the continent, is expected to be involved in negotiations, given that many African stars play in Europe’s top leagues. Some players might establish unique arrangements between their clubs and national teams. However, Andre Onana’s decision to play for Manchester United in the Premier League just 24 hours before Cameroon’s first game at Afcon 2023 proved disadvantageous when the goalkeeper was benched by the Indomitable Lions, despite arriving via private jet in time for kick-off. Warm-up matches were held starting eight days before the 2023 finals, but it remains uncertain whether participating teams next year will have their full squads available at a similar point. Senegal, featuring Sadio Mane, and Nigeria are both anticipated to be among the top seeds at Afcon 2025. The format in Morocco will be consistent with the previous three tournaments, featuring 24 teams divided into six groups of four. The top two teams from each group will advance to the round of 16, along with the four best third-placed sides. From that stage, the competition will proceed as a straight knockout. Countries will be allocated to one of four pots, most likely based on their Fifa world rankings, ahead of the draw on 27 January in Rabat. Defending champions Ivory Coast are expected to be among the top seeds, as the Elephants were ranked as Africa’s sixth-best side in the most recent rankings. Games at the 2023 tournament in Ivory Coast took place in six different stadiums across five cities, with all venues having a minimum capacity of 20,000. The same requirements are in effect for Afcon 2025. Although the Royal Moroccan Football Federation has not made an official announcement, the country has ample options, possessing what is arguably the continent’s finest football infrastructure. A 115,000-capacity stadium is currently under construction on the eastern outskirts of Casablanca for when the country co-hosts the 2030 World Cup, but it will not be ready before Afcon begins. The Stade Mohammed V in Casablanca hosted the 1988 final, but Tangier’s Ibn Batouta Stadium now boasts the highest capacity in the nation. The Prince Moulay Stadium in Rabat was utilized during the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in 2022, and Agadir, Fez, and Marrakesh are also strong candidates to host matches. Ivory Coast will defend the trophy after securing their third continental title on home soil in February. A remarkable aspect of Afcon is its inherent unpredictability. The last eight editions have produced seven different champions, with Ivory Coast being the only nation to win the trophy twice since 2010. Morocco has been Africa’s top-ranked team since their historic run to the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and there is growing pressure for them to end their 49-year wait for a second continental title. The Atlas Lions delivered dominant performances in qualifying, scoring 26 goals and conceding just twice, to finish with the only 100% record. However, hosting the tournament does not necessarily confer an advantage; this century, only Tunisia, Egypt, and the Ivorians have triumphed on home ground. Nigeria will aim to improve upon their runner-up finish earlier this year, while Senegal and Egypt are also considered strong contenders. There will be no debutants at the Nations Cup, but Comoros and Botswana will both be making only their second appearances. Sudan achieved a remarkable qualification amidst a civil war, notably eliminating four-time champions Ghana during their campaign. Uganda, slated to co-host the 2027 tournament, and Benin are participating for the first time since 2019. Seventeen teams from the 2023 edition are returning, and a record seven qualifiers hail from the Southern African region. Predicting individual standout performers is challenging. However, assuming no injuries or significant loss of form over the next 12 months, newly crowned African Footballer of the Year Ademola Lookman is expected to lead Nigeria’s charge, given his stellar performances for Atalanta. Mohamed Salah, the Egypt captain, is delivering impressive displays for Liverpool this season and will be determined to win his first Afcon, thereby ending the Pharaohs’ 15-year trophy drought. Meanwhile, Real Madrid forward Brahim Diaz was the top scorer in qualifying for Morocco, netting seven goals. Yet, some of the top performers in Ivory Coast earlier this year were unexpected, with Equatorial Guinea’s Emilio Nsue winning the golden boot, Nigeria defender William Troost-Ekong being named best player, and South Africa goalkeeper Ronwen Williams outshining European-based rivals to secure the golden glove. The qualified nations are: Morocco (hosts), Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Comoros, DR Congo, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Mali, Mozambique, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.