The final draw for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) took place on Monday, January 27 at Rabat’s Mohammed V National Theatre and saw Zambia’s Chipolopolo Boys placed in Group A with hosts Morocco.
Zambia was drawn against Morocco for the second time in a row, this time alongside Mali and Comoros.
The 2025 AFCON will take place from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026, with Morocco taking on the Comoros in the opening match and Chipolopolo facing Mali the following day.
Avram Grant’s side will face the Comoros in their second match before finishing the group stage with a game against the Atlas Lions.
In Group B, record seven-time winners Egypt will face a trio of Southern African teams: South Africa, who won bronze medals last year, Angola, and Zimbabwe.
In Group C, last year’s finalists Nigeria will face Tunisia and the East African duo of Uganda and Tanzania.
The 2021 champions, Senegal, were drawn against the Democratic Republic of Congo, Benin, and Botswana in Group D.
Algeria, winners in 2019, faces Burkina Faso, Equatorial Guinea, and Sudan in an intriguing Group E, while defending champions Cote d’Ivoire face old rivals and five-time winners Cameroon, Gabon, and Mozambique in Group F as they seek to win back-to-back titles.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the round of 16, along with the four best third-place teams.
