AFCON 2024

The group stage is done and dusted, and from Saturday, January 27 until Tuesday, January 30, the 16 remaining teams will duke it out to reach the quarter-finals as they tussle to be crowned kings of the continent. Reigning champions Senegal led the way by winning three games from three in the group stage but some of their fancied rivals have struggled to replicate the same level of success, with the likes of Egypt, Cameroon (and hosts Ivory Coast) qualifying for the knockout rounds by the skin of their teeth. Meanwhile, for as much as Equatorial Guinea and Cape Verde have impressed by sauntering to qualification, Ghana and Algeria are among the heavy-hitters that have already returned home with their tails between their legs. Here, The Athletic runs through the last-16 showdowns on the horizon. Who faces who, where are the games and when will the first knockout matches of AFCON 2023 take place. Saturday, January 27 Angola v Namibia Venue : Stade de la Paix, Bouake Kick-off : 17:00 GMT

Moroccan midfielder, Sofyan Amrabat has said they prioritized finishing as group leaders after defeating Zambia in the last round game of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Côte d'Ivoire 2023. The midfielder who was key in the win over Zambia won the TotalEnergies Man of the Match.  Speaking after the game, Amrabat indicated being top of their group was one of their target and he is proud they ended up achieving it.  "We wanted this first place. We are proud to have done it. It was a difficult match but we did the essentials. There is always room to improve before our next match", declared the midfielder ground. Walid Regragui’s was not part of the team after receiving a ban from CAF ahead of the game.  Despite not hearing the news early, they delivered as expected of them.  "We heard the news today. It was surprising. We missed him but we made do with the situation. We hope to have him for the next match," he added. Morocco will face South Africa in th

The group stage of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d'Ivoire 2023, concluded on Wednesday night, setting up some highly anticipated knock-out stage clashes. The group stage produced everything expected of the grit the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON is made of; stellar shocks, goals, records, history and passionate fans turning up at match venues. In the marquee match of the round, defending champions Senegal will take on tournament hosts Cote d'Ivoire. The Elehpants suffered a shock 4-0 thrashing by Equatorial Guinea in their final group game but still advanced. They now face the daunting task of overcoming an in-form Senegalese side yet to drop points. Two more African heavyweights will collide when Nigeria meets Cameroon. Both teams had uneven group stages but remain continental powerhouses. Elsewhere, Morocco topped their group without conceding and will look to continue their fine form against South Africa. After surprisingly winning Group A undefeated, underdogs E

Senegal young sensation, Lamine Camara has credited his senior teammates for his standout TotalEnergies Man of the Match performance in the team’s TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023 opening match against The Gambia.  Camara’s brace and his overall performance earned him the individual accolade which he says will motivate him to work even harder and it must also be credited to his teammates. “I am happy with this recognition. This is the result of the hard work that we all did. Winning the first match remains a good thing” said the Metz FC player who recently joined the French club. The 20-year-old star continued to say: “I am pleased after scoring a brace in the match, and I must remain focused now on the rest of the matches. I am pleased to participate in such a tournament with the first team and to be in the company of senior players such as Sadio Mane and others. These players are the ones who helped me stand out today”, concluded Camara.  Up next for Senegal

The Stallions of Burkina Faso will play their opening game in the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Côte d'Ivoire 2023 against Mauritania at the Stade de la Paix in Bouake. Burkina are touted as favorites for the clash in Group D as they face Al-Murabitun’s team, who are still chasing their first win in the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON after failing in their previous two attempts. Hubert Velud will finally be making his long awaited TotalEnergies CAF AFCON debut. Amir Abdou on the other hand will be hoping to replicate what he did with Comoros in the 2021 edition by qualifying them to the knockout stage in a group with Morocco and Ghana. One key battle that will be decisive in this game will be Dango Ouattara coming up against defender, Aly Abeid. Dango scored 4 goals in the qualifiers of the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON Côte d'lvoire 2023 and was the country’s top scorer. He will have Aly Abeid, who was part of Mauritania’s previous two TotalEnergies CAF AFCON finals to deal with

For thirteen years, the Ayew brothers have been alongside each other in the national team and will be participating in the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Côte d'Ivoire 2023.  They are the pride of their family, the Ayews, heirs to their father Abedi Pelé, winner of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations, the last one that the Black Stars won, in 1982.  For the sixth time in their career, André and Jordan Ayew will together defend the colors of the the black star; Ghana. Arriving with great fanfare in Abidjan, the city where they will play their first matches of the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON Côte d'lvoire 2023, the Ghanaians are settling in quietly. André Ayew, the captain of the team, was the first to finish his lunch, he greeted us then made a call to his brother, to let him know that the Cafonline.com team is ready to interview them. Jordan immediately arrived in the hall, with a wide smile.  The two have a special admiration for the tournament.  “We have to play it to understa

Algeria touched down in Bouake on Wednesday with coach Djamel Belmadi eager for his team to start their participation in the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023.  Riyad Mahrez led a contingent of players and technical staff that arrived at the Aeroport De Bouaké, at 12:15pm local time with the Saudi Arabia-based captain revealing that the Desert Foxes had good preparations for the competition. The squad were met on arrival by an artistic display of local culture - music, drumming, and dancing by an ensemble and a number of Algerians in Bouake were also on hand to welcome their national heroes.  The two-time winners looked elegant in their apparel as they were led by former Manchester City star Riyad Mahrez, who will be a key figure for the former champions.  Speaking to CAFOnline.com upon their arrival, coach Belmadi said the team was raring to go and they could not wait to get their campaign started. . "We are happy to be here and we are in a hurry to start

The Confédération Africaine de Football (“CAF”) today announced the conclusion of extensive global broadcast agreements with TV-Broadcasting Rights Holders from Africa, Europe, Asia, South America, North America and the Caribbean ahead of the kick-off of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (“AFCON”) Côte d'Ivoire 2023. The tournament will kick off in Côte d'Ivoire on Saturday 13 January 2024. The global TV-Broadcast partners include Sky (United Kingdom), BBC (United Kingdom), LaLiga+ (Spain), SportItalia (Italy), Sport Digital (Germany & Switzerland), SportTV (Portugal), Viaplay (Nordics) and Band TV (Brazil). beIN Sport, CANAL+, New World TV and approximately 45 Free To Air broadcasters have also concluded partnership agreements with CAF and this will result in the TotalEnergies AFCON Côte d'Ivoire 2023 being broadcast in approximately 180 countries. CAF received approximately 6000 Media applications for accreditation to the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON Côte d’Ivoir

The teams that will be playing at the 34th edition of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d'Ivoire 2023 continued with friendlies ahead of the tournament that kicks off on Saturday. Here are the results of the latest friendly matches played: Ghana 0 Namibia 0 In Kumasi, Ghana's Black Stars couldn't break through against a well-organized Namibia. The two teams ended in a goalless draw, but the coaches identified the work that remains to be done before the start of the competition. Cameroon 1 Zambia 1 In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where they were in preparation, Cameroon and Zambia held each other to a 1-1 draw. Patson Daka opened the scoring early for the Chipolopolos before Darlin Yongwa equalized for the Indomitable Lions. Equatorial Guinea 1 Djibouti 1 Another draw in these preparations. This time, Equatorial Guinea couldn't dominate Djibouti. Carlos Akakpo scored for Nzalang Nacional. Algeria 4 Burundi 0 Algeria's Desert Foxes concluded their training

Top scorer for Guinea-Bissau during the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Côte d'Ivoire 2023 Qualifiers with four goals, Zinho Gano, is hopeful of impressing at the tournament. The Zulte Waregem striker in Belgium, who is preparing to makes his TotalEnergies CAF AFCON debut intends to keep the momentum. The “Djurtus” share Group A with hosts Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea – a group Gano believes is possible to make it out of. Exclusively speaking to CAFOnline ahead of their opener to be played at the majestic Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara in Ebimpe on 13 January, the 30-year-old discusses his country's chances and personal ambitions for the tournament. How was the trip from Bissau to Abidjan? It was long, we are all tired. But the most important thing is that we arrived safely, everything went well and we are happy to be here. What are your first impressions since your arrival in Cote d’Ivoire? We arrived Monday evening and we were well received, both at

Morocco became the first side, outside the host nation, to arrive in Cote d’Ivoire for the 34th edition of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations when the Atlas Lions landed in Abidjan on Sunday. The FIFA World Cup semi-finalists landed at Felix Houphouet Boigny Airport in the afternoon amid local traditional drumming and dancing to welcome the side to the host country of the continental showpiece event. The plane carrying coach Walid Regragui’s side landed in Abidjan at 2:00 PM local time before they were received in Terminal 2 with an impressive cultural ceremony arranged by the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON amid tight security. Atlas Lions striker Youssef En-Nesyri was the first to appear from the aircraft, followed by PSG star, Achraf Hakimi as the delegation was met on arrival by the Ivorian Minister of Transport Amadou Kone. Mr Kone, who personally supervised the arrival of this first team for the tournament, was accompanied by the ambassado

The 34th edition of the CAF TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations is set to kick off in a few days in Côte d'Ivoire. As in previous editions, several teams have chosen to include young players who will have the opportunity to showcase their talents on the world stage. Top 5 list of young players to watch during this competition: 1. Lamine Camara (Senegal) At just 20 years old, Lamine Camara plays a pivotal role for French side Metz this season, contributing with 17 appearances, one goal, and two assists. Scoring for Senegal on November 18, 2023, against South Sudan in the World Cup 2026 qualifiers, Camara quickly gained the trust of coach Aliou Cisse. 2. Wilfried Nathan Douala (Cameroon) Born on May 15, 2006, in Douala, Wilfried Nathan Douala is the surprise inclusion in Rigobert Song's list for the CAF TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations 2023. A midfielder for Victoria United in Cameroon's top division, the 17-year-old impressed the coaching staff with his immense technic

The Confédération Africaine de Football (“CAF”) today announced a 40% increase in the Prize Money for the Winner of the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (“AFCON”) Côte d'Ivoire 2023. The Winner of the TotalEnergies AFCON Côte d'Ivoire 2023 will receive USD 7 000 000. The Runner-up of the TotalEnergies AFCON Côte d'Ivoire 2023 will now get USD 4 000 000. Each of the two semi-finalists will receive USD 2 500 000 and each of the four quarter-finalists, USD 1 300 000. The President of CAF Dr Patrice Motsepe said: “CAF has made significant progress over the past two years in increasing the Prize Money of the AFCON and all its other major competitions. We have increased the Prize Money of the AFCON Winner to USD 7 000 000 which is a 40% increase from the previous AFCON Prize Money. I am confident that a portion of the Prize Money will contribute to developing football and also benefit all the football stakeholders, as well as assist our Member Associations with their administr

There is a chance Partey will return from injury before AFCON - Arteta Injured Arsenal star Thomas Partey named in Ghana's provisional squad for AFCON 2023 The Ghana Premier League representatives – Richmond Lamptey, Jonathan Sowah, and Abdul Fatawu Hamid – have been assigned jersey numbers 22, 27, and 17, respectively. The Black Stars' AFCON campaign kicks off with a match against Cape Verde on Sunday, January 14, 2024, at the Stade Félix Houphouët Boigny in Ivory Coast. Subsequent fixtures include clashes against Egypt on Thursday, January 18, and Mozambique on Monday, January 22.

With the highly anticipated 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) just around the corner, the official shirt numbers for Ghana's Black Stars have been unveiled by the Confederation of African Football, revealing the successor to Thomas Partey's iconic No. 5 jersey. The Black Stars, currently in camp in Kumasi after reconsidering their initial decision to move to Johannesburg, South Africa, have been drawn into Group B alongside Cape Verde, Egypt, and Mozambique for the continental showcase. As Chris Hughton's 27-man squad prepares for their opening game, Turkish-based defender Kingsley Schindler steps into the void left by the absence of injured Arsenal man Thomas Partey, inheriting the No. 5 jersey. Meanwhile, stalwarts Andre Ayew and Jordan Ayew maintain their No. 10 and No. 9 jerseys, respectively.