CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2025 Morocco: Fixtures, Teams & Key Info

• Bafana Bafana gear up for AFCON 2025 in Morocco, drawn in a competitive Group B
• The 35th Africa Cup of Nations promises 24 teams, six cities, and nine stadiums of top African football
• Defending champions Côte d’Ivoire face a fresh wave of challengers in the hunt for continental glory

South Africa will compete in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, scheduled to take place in Morocco from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026.

Bafana Bafana, who have also qualified for next year’s FIFA World Cup in the Americas, are drawn in Group B alongside neighbours Zimbabwe, Angola, and Egypt.

Morocco will host the 35th edition of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations, with 24 teams descending on nine stadiums across six host cities. Reigning champions Côte d’Ivoire will aim to defend their title against a new wave of ambitious challengers.

AFCON 2025 format and key fixtures

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The 24 nations are divided into six groups of four for the group stage. The top two teams from each group, along with the four best third-placed sides, will advance to the Round of 16, marking the start of the knockout phase.

From there, every match will be a single-elimination contest, with extra time and penalties if necessary. The quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final will ultimately determine the tournament champion.

The tournament kicks off on 21 December 2025, with host nation Morocco taking on Comoros at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat. Bafana Bafana will play their first group match against Angola on 22 December, face Egypt on 26 December, and close the group stage against Zimbabwe, with whom they previously drew 0-0 in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

South Africa still maintains their place as the 10th best team in Africa. Even though they dropped their overall FIFA rankings. This drop was attributed to the change of the Lesotho result from a 2-0 victory to a 3-0 loss earlier in the qualifying phase after they were found guilty of fielding an ineligible player by FIFA.

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Morocco still holds their place as the number one-ranked team in Africa and is 12th in the world. Senegal follows them closely in second place in Africa, while they are 18th in the world.

South Africa's group-stage opponent at the AFCON 2025, Egypt, is ranked third in Africa and 32nd in the world. The Pharaohs are followed by their North African brothers, Algeria, who are ranked 35th in the world.

Bafana Bafana completes the top 10 teams in Africa and will have a chance to add to their points when they meet against Zambia in an international friendly on Saturday, 15 November in Gqerbeha. Head coach Hugo Broos will use the match to fine-tune the team's preparations for the AFCON.

Jordaan speaks on Bafana's point deduction

Briefly News earlier reported that SAFA president Danny Jordaan commented on Bafana Bafana's points deduction during the World Cup qualifiers.

There have been calls from the public that those involved in the issue should be sanctioned by SAFA.

Source: Briefly News