With 15 teams already securing qualification and 24 set to participate, the battle for the remaining nine spots in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations intensifies.
The tournament, which will be hosted by Morocco next year, December 2025 to January 2026, as obtained from the CAF website, promises fierce competition as the road to the finals narrows.
PUNCH ONLINE reports on Friday that the defending champion and runner up in the last edition, Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria have both secured their qualification spots in their respective groups.
Nigeria, South Africa, Tunisia, and Uganda all confirmed their places on Thursday, some benefiting from other results in the latest round of qualifiers.
Tunisia clinched a dramatic 3-2 victory over Madagascar, courtesy of Ali El Abdi’s stoppage-time header, ensuring their record 18th consecutive AFCON appearance.
Meanwhile, Gabon qualified from Group B without playing, as their closest rival, the Central African Republic, lost 1-0 to Lesotho.
South Africa and Uganda also advanced without taking to the pitch, cementing the top two places in Group K after Congo fell 3-2 to South Sudan.
For Nigeria, a 1-0 win by Libya over Rwanda earlier in the day secured their top-two finish in Group D.
Later, the Super Eagles were held to a 1-1 draw by Benin, with Victor Osimhen’s late equaliser sparing Nigeria from defeat.
Among other developments, Ghana’s qualification hopes were revived after Sudan suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat to Niger, setting up a tense finish in Group F.
However, Ghana must win their remaining two fixtures and hope Sudan falter in their last match against Angola.
Elsewhere, Algeria, already qualified alongside Equatorial Guinea from Group E, dropped their first points of the campaign in a goalless draw against Equatorial Guinea in stifling Malabo heat.
So far, these nations have secured their spots at AFCON 2025:
Morocco – Host (Automatic)
Burkina Faso (Group L)
Cameroon (Group J)
Algeria (Group E) – Table leader
DR Congo (Group H)
Senegal (Group L)
Egypt (Group C)
Angola (Group F) – Table leader
Equatorial Guinea (Group E)
Côte d’Ivoire (Group G)
Gabon (Group B)
Uganda (Group K)
South Africa (Group K)
Tunisia (Group A)
Nigeria (Group D)
With Friday’s qualifiers featuring 10 matches across the continent, the race to complete the list of finalists continues.
Teams like Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are poised to claim their places with home victories, while others will fight to keep their dreams alive.