All the 24 slots for the Africa Cup of Nations 2025 are sealed. The tournament will be held between December 21, 2025 and January 18, 2026, in Morocco, where the best teams will battle it out for continental honors. Focus now shifts to preparation of the event as national teams play friendlies to test out each others. At the same time, players are eyeing a slot and they will be looking to be on their club’s starting list to secure a spot. So, which teams qualified for AFCON 2025?
AFCON 2025 Quick Facts
These are the important details you should know about this event.
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- AFCON 2025 will be the 35th edition of the tournament
- It will ran from December 21, 2025 and January 18, 2026
- Ghana will miss the event for the first time in 20 years
- Guinea withdrew from hosting duties because of logistical challenges
- AFCON 2025 will have an increased prize pool, surpassing the $5 million awarded to Senegal.
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Hosts and Powerhouses
Morocco
Morocco received automatic qualification as hosts. During the 2023 tournament, they were eliminated in the round of 16 by South Africa. The Atlas Lionesses were favorites, after their 2022 World Cup heroics, where they reached the semi-finals. For this edition, they will also be favorites as hosts.
Egypt
The Pharaohs were dominant in the qualifiers as they finished top of the group with 14 points and a goal difference of 10. They were knocked out in the round of 16 in the last edition by the Democratic Republic of Congo. This was a sub-par tournament going by their standards as 7-time AFCON champions, and will look to make amends at their North African neighbors backyard.
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Senegal
The Teranga Lions won the tournament in 2022 and could not replicate that in 2023. They were eliminated in the semi-finals, but won the third place against Egypt. During the qualification phase, Senegal finished top of their group with 16 points, and will hope to be that strong in the actual tournament. However, they will have to do it without their long-time coach Aliou Cisse, who left the position in November.
Ivory Coast
The Indomitable Lions’s goal is to retain the title. They finished second in their group behind Zambia, but that won’t matter in Morocco. The Ivorians are three time champions and will be looking to add a fourth trophy.
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Nigeria
The Super Eagles played in the final of AFCON 2023 and will be gunning to win it in Morocco. It will be their 19th appearance in the event, after a strong qualification campaign that saw them top their group.
Serious Contenders
Algeria
Algeria qualified strongly for AFCON 2025, and topped their group with 16 points, 8 more than second-placed Equatorial Guinea. The 2019 winners had a disappointing campaign in Ivory Coast in 2023 as they were eliminated in the group stage.
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South Africa
The Banyana Banyana topped a competitive group and booked their ticket to the AFCON for an 11th time in their history. They reached the semi-finals on the last edition, and were eliminated by Nigeria. They will look to go one step further in Morocco.
Cameroon
Five-time AFCON winners Cameroon have posted disappointed results in recent editions of the event, having been eliminated in the round of 16 in 2023 and in the group stage in 2021. They are struggling to recapture their form with which they once dominated the sport. However, the AFCON 2025 edition is another chance to redeem themselves.
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First-timers
Botswana
Botswana is having a breakthrough year in sport. After Letsile Tebogo’s historic moment at the Paris 2024 Olympics, the football team gave them more reasons to celebrate, after qualifying for the country’s first-ever AFCON tournament. They finished second in Group C behind Egypt with eight points.
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Long-Time Returnees
Mozambique
Mozambique returns to the AFCON for the first time in over a decade. The AFCON 2025 will be their sixth appearance, demonstrating the country’s upward trajectory in the sport.
Sudan
Despite the political tensions going on in their country, Sudan put all of that behind them to qualify for AFCON. The domestic league was suspended and played in neutral grounds due to civil war, but gave its citizens something to smile about and look forward to. The team will aim to win the competition, but considering their circumstances, being at the tournament is a win for them.
Equatorial Guinea
Equatorial Guinea grabbed the second spot in its qualification group with eight points and qualified for a third tournament successively. This will be their fifth event.
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Exciting Teams
Tunisia
Tunisia had an underwhelming AFCON 2023 outing. They were last in their group and were eliminated in the group stage for the first time since 2013.
Mali
Mali topped their group with 14 points, finishing their qualification campaign strongly with a 6-0 win over Eswatini. They have had 13 appearances in the event, with the best finish coming in 1972 when they were runners-up. In 2023, they reached the quarter-finals, an admirable result, after finishing in the round of 16 and group stage in the previous two editions.
DR Congo
Congo DR returns to the continental stage after finishing fourth in Ivory Coast. They are one of the most unpredictable teams and makes for an exciting watch.
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Zambia
Zambia is always remembered for its 2012 victory despite not posted good performances since. In fact, it missed three editions between 2017 and 2021, and only returned for the 2023 edition, and were eliminated in the group stage. Can Zambia re-establish themselves in the continent?
Uganda
The Ugandan Cranes return to the AFCON stage for the first time since 2019. They finished second in their group behind South Africa with just a point. This will be their 8th edition, with their best finish coming in 1978, where they finished runners-up.
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Angola
Angola is an exciting team with an attacking flair. They finished top of their group with 14 points and reached the quarterfinals in 2023. They can be unpredictable which adds to an exciting watch.
Gabon
Gabon will play in their 8th AFCON appearance but will look forward to more consistency.
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso was the first team to qualify for the AFCON 2025 and will be their 13th appearance.
Benin
Benin qualified for AFCON 2025, getting them back to the world stage for the first time since 2019. It was the first time they moved out of the group stage and will hope to replicate this form in Morocco.
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Comoros
Comoros will play at the event for a second time. They finished top of their group, a strong statement about their intentions in the upcoming event in Morocco.
Tanzania
The East African nation will return to AFCON 2025 for the fourth time, after finishing second in their group. Their aim will be to make it out of the groups, as they haven’t managed that on their previous three experiences.
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe was last in the AFCON in 2021. They missed out the 2023 edition as they were servings a FIFA ban. The team has never gone beyond the group stage and will look to change that in Morocco.
In Conclusion
These are the 24 teams that will contest for continental honors at AFCON 2025 in Morocco. Most of them regularly qualify for the event and some are first time qualifiers. Who are you interested in watching?
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