Football fans were left salivating after the final draw for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), Morocco 2025, produced exciting rounds following a star-studded ceremony at the Mohammed V National Theatre in Rabat on Monday, 27 January.
Defending champions Cote D’Ivoire will lock horns with old rivals and five-time winners Cameroon, Gabon and Mozambique in Group F, while record seven-time winners Egypt face a trio of Southern African teams in Group B in the form of last year’s bronze medalists South Africa, Angola and Zimbabwe.
Three-time champions and last runners-up Nigeria will tackle with Tunisia in Group C, alongside Uganda and Tanzania, who will be AFCON co-hosts in 2027.
Similarly, hosts Morocco headline Group A and will take on Mali, Zambia and Comoros in what looks a hotly contested pool, while 2021 champions Senegal go up against Democratic Republic of Congo, Benin and Botswana in Group D.
Algeria, winners in 2019, take on Burkina Faso, Equatorial Guinea and Sudan in an interesting Group E.
The teams were drawn into six groups each containing four sides ahead of the 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026 finals tournament that will be spread across six host cities and nine stadia in Morocco as Africa’s best chase the continent’s most coveted trophy.
The top two teams in each pool will advance to the round of 16, along with the four best Third-placed sides.
The draw, which was broadcast in over 90 countries worldwide, featured African legends Serge Aurier, Aliou Cissé, Joseph Yobo and Mustapha Hadji, among others.
AFCON, MOROCCO 2025
- GROUP A: Morocco, Mali, Zambia, Comoros
- GROUP B: Egypt, South Africa, Angola, Zimbabwe
- GROUP C: Nigeria, Tunisia, Uganda, Tanzania
- GROUP D: Senegal, DR Congo, Benin, Botswana
- GROUP E: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Equatorial Guinea, Sudan
- GROUP F: Cote d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Gabon, Mozambique
