Africa Cup of Nations 2025: Everything you need to know, from the team in crisis to the best games to watch | OneFootball

The 35th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations kicks off on Sunday when the hosts Morocco face Comoros in the tournament opener in Rabat.

Ivory Coast were the champions last time out, winning the Afcon on home soil after an extraordinary campaign where The Elephants fired their manager mid-tournament and went from the brink of crashing out of the group stages to lifting the trophy against Nigeria in the final.

Could history repeat itself two years on? Well, Morocco are the pre-tournament favourites. The Atlas Lions became the first African team to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup three years ago. If the extraordinary support they received in Qatar is anything to go by, then Morocco will have a huge home advantage - although that could lend itself to the suffocating pressure of expectations as they aim to win their first Afcon title since 1976.

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The pressure is on Morocco, who made history at the last World Cup as they beat Spain and Morocco to reach the semi-finals (Getty Images)

One of the best aspects of the Africa Cup of Nations, though, is how open it can be. Half of the countries in the 24-team field have previously been champions, with Senegal, Algeria, Cameroon and Nigeria among the others sides to have triumphed more recently.

Contrast that to next summer’s World Cup, where so far only seven nations competing at the 48-team tournament have been world champions in the past, and that is why many at Afcon will be believing this can be their year in what is often an unpredictable tournament.

Key dates

The group stages run from Sunday 21 December to Wednesday 31 December. The knockout stages begin on Saturday 3 January. The final will be played on Sunday 18 January at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat.

Controversy before kick-off

The timing of the Africa Cup of Nations is, once again, a talking point - which is unfair to the tournament itself as it becomes squeezed by club football’s endless expansion. On one side, the new 32-team Fifa Club World Cup staged last July forced Afcon to move from a date in the northern hemisphere summer. On the other side, the conclusion of the Champions League league phase in January forced an earlier kick-off to Afcon and for the tournament to be played over Christmas.

Many of the teams are unhappy - particularly with the sudden change to the date for clubs to release their players for the tournament, reduced by seven days to fall less than a week before the opening game. It’s similar to the situation countries faced before the 2022 World Cup, which also took place in mid-season. As a result, coaches have seen key preparation time cut but players could be sharp and ready to go, particularly those who are in European leagues.

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Cameroon’s Bryan Mbeumo played in Manchester United’s game against Bournemouth on Monday 15 December - the same day as Fifa’s mandatory release date (Getty Images)

The groups

The top two teams in each group will progress. The four best-ranked teams who finished third will make up the last-16.

The games and players to watch

Morocco v Comoros | Sunday December 21, 7pm

The opening game of the tournament, which could set the tone as Morocco look to kick off in style. The hosts are still managed by Walid Regragui, who led them to the World Cup semi-finals, but the Atlas Lions suffered a disappointing last-16 exit to South Africa at the last Afcon two years ago. So the pressure is on. “We have to win the Africa Cup of Nations,” Regragui said.

Morocco’s Champions League-winning captain Achraf Hakimi is their star player and all eyes will be on whether the PSG full-back recovers from an ankle injury to feature in the opening game. Regragui can still call upon the same spine of the team that performed so well at the World Cup with the added bonus of Real Madrid forward Brahim Diaz, who is set to play in his first Afcon since switching allegiances from Spain.

Comoros are responsible for perhaps the biggest upset in Afcon history when they defeated Ghana in 2022 and reached the last-16. The tiny island nation will be making their second Afcon appearance and will be looking to keep up the tournament’s spirit of the underdog alive. Cape Verde (who did not make this tournament but did qualify for the World Cup) came within a penalty shoot-out of the semi-finals last time, for example.

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Achraf Hakimi is returning from an ankle injury and will be key to Morocco’s hopes (Getty Images)

Egypt v South Africa | Friday December 26, 3pm

A genuine blockbuster in Group B, featuring two teams who could win the title and have qualified automatically for the World Cup. It’s been far from a vintage season so far from Mohamed Salah but the ‘Egyptian King’ will be motivated to put things right as he bids to win his first Afcon with the Pharaohs, who are the most successful side in the tournament’s history with a record seven titles. In terms of team achievements, It’s the one thing missing from Salah’s career and the timing, given his explosive interview before departing Liverpool, would be exquisite.

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(REUTERS)

Nigeria v Tunisia | Saturday December 27, 8pm

Oh, Nigeria. The Super Eagles are coming into Afcon having failed to qualify for the World Cup for the second time in a row, as a result of their play-off defeat to DR Congo in Rabat. Nigeria’s head coach, Eric Chelle, then said some pretty strange stuff about the DR Congo players doing “voodoo” during the penalty shootout - but there will be no hiding place should Nigeria fall short again. Runners-up at the last Afcon, Nigeria still boast a talented squad that includes Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman and should be among the contenders.

Senegal v DR Congo | Saturday December 27, 3pm

DR Congo kept their World Cup dream alive by beating both Cameroon and Nigeria to reach the March’s intercontinental play-offs, in what was a statement pair of results to suggest they could be dark horses again after reaching the semi-finals two years ago. Even without star striker Yoanne Wissa, left out after only just returning from injury for Newcastle, they boast a formidable squad that includes West Ham’s Aaron Wan-Bisska and Sunderland’s Noah Sadiki, as well as talismanic captain Chancel Mbemba.

Could they topple Senegal, the champions from 2022 who will be among the favourites this time around? And will Sadio Mane, one of Africa’s greatest ever players, continue to feature for the Lions of Teranga, with Ismaila Sarr, Nicholas Jackson and Ilman Ndiaye all competing for a place in the front line?

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Chancel Mbemba celebrates the penalty that knocked out Nigeria from World Cup contention - the Democratic Republic of Congo could be one of the teams to watch (REUTERS)

Algeria v Sudan | Wednesday December 24, 3pm

It’s remarkable Sudan even qualified for the tournament given the civil war and humanitarian crisis that is taking place back home. They had to play their qualifying games at a neutral venue in Libya yet still took four points against Ghana, which is the reason why the Black Stars missed out on this year’s tournament. Their opening game against Algeria will be a poignant moment.

Ivory Coast v Cameroon | Sunday December 28, 8pm

Sebastian Haller inspired Ivory Coast to their Afcon title two years ago but is a doubt to play in the tournament due to a hamstring injury. The return of Wilfried Zaha, two years since his last international appearance is intriguing, while in Manchester United’s Amad Diallo and Yan Diomande, who has impressed for Leipzig this season, the Ivory Coast still possess plenty of firepower.

This Group F clash would appear to be a heavyweight one - but how will Cameroon turn up after a chaotic build-up? After failing to qualify for the World Cup, Cameroon sacked coach Marc Brys just three weeks before the start of Afcon amid allegations of "subterfuge" and appointed his assistant, David Pagou, who promptly left out Cameroon’s legendary captain Vincent Aboubakar and former Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana from the squad.

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Samuel Eto'o, the president of the Cameroon football federation, was involved in the decision to sack Brys while goalkeeper Onana has been left out (Getty Images)

Every game from Afcon 2025 will be shown live by Channel 4 in the UK, on either Channel 4, E4, 4 Seven, or online on the Channel 4 streaming service or YouTube.