Our Correspondent | Africa Guardian
Morocco, the 2022 World Cup semi-finalist, will kick off the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations as the host nation in a group alongside Mali, Zambia, and Comoros. The tournament, which will run from December 21 to January 18, is the biggest football event in Morocco before the country co-hosts the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal. Morocco made history at the 2022 World Cup by becoming the first African team to reach the semifinals, only to be knocked out by France.
In the previous Africa Cup of Nations held last year, Morocco was unexpectedly eliminated by South Africa in the round of 16. Ivory Coast, the host nation, went on to win the title and will begin their title defense in a tough group with Cameroon, Gabon, and Mozambique.
Nigeria, who were the runners-up in the last tournament, featuring star players Ademola Lookman and Victor Osimhen, has been placed in a group with Tunisia, Uganda, and Tanzania. Egypt, led by Mohamed Salah, is still in search of his first Africa Cup title at the age of 33. They have been drawn into a group with South Africa, Angola, and Zimbabwe.
2021 champions Senegal will face Congo, Benin, and Botswana, while Algeria, the 2019 champions, will be up against Burkina Faso, Equatorial Guinea, and Sudan.
Matches will be held across six cities: Agadir, Casablanca, Fez, Marrakesh, Rabat, and Tangier. The tournament will have an earlier start in mid-December and wrap up by January to accommodate players returning to their European clubs for the resumption of the Champions League. Just months later, many of these players will take part in the 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, with Africa securing nine direct entries to the expanded 48-team competition.
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