The draw for the 2025 AFCON has been held and the group stage of the 24 team competition is bound to deliver a host of exciting games in the wake of the draw.
The event was headlined by CAF President Dr. Patrice Motsepe along with a bevy of African legends and AFCON winners including Joseph Yobo of Nigeria.
This year’s competition is set to be held in Morocco from December 21, 2025 to January 18, 2026 with Cote D’Ivoire as defending champions.
The West African nation got drawn in Group F alongside Cameroon, Gabon and Mozambique; Cote D’Ivoire and Cameroon share a feisty rivalry and the latest chapter in the heated clash will be served at the end of the year.
Host nation Morocco got drawn alongside Mali, Zambia and Comoros; Island nation Comoros shocked the field by making it to the Round of 16 stage in the 2021 AFCON.
So, who takes home this beauty then? 🏆😍#TotalEnergiesAFCON2025 pic.twitter.com/hRj0PF2HUM
— CAF_Online (@CAF_Online) January 27, 2025
However, the vaunted Group of Death, belongs to Group B as former AFCON winners Egypt and South Africa have been paired with Angola and Zimbabwe.
Angola beat Ghana’s Black Stars en route to qualifying to the 2025 AFCON. Angola’s 1-0 win over Ghana at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi marked the first Black Stars home loss at the Baba Yara in 24 years.
The top two ranked nations in each group at the end of a round robin format of games progress to the Round of 16 stage. The best four ranked third placed teams also get to progress from the group stage.
Scroll down to view the full list of groups for the 2025 AFCON preliminary stage.
Can December come already?
Here’s what the #TotalEnergiesAFCON2025 groups look like after the Final Draw! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/QYQsAIu1e4
— CAF_Online (@CAF_Online) January 27, 2025
