AFCON
Facts & Figures Ahead Afcon Qualifiers Matchday 5
The Matchday 5 of the Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco 2025, qualifiers will be played from Wednesday to Saturday across the continent.
Below are the match facts:
WEDNESDAY 13 NOVEMBER
Namibia vs Cameroon
● Namibia extended their losing run to five games in AFCON qualifying with a 3-1 defeat against Zimbabwe last time out, with their last victory in this competition coming against today’s opponents Cameroon in March 2023 (2-1).
● Cameroon are unbeaten in five AFCON qualifiers (W4 D1), winning each of their last two – they’ll be looking to win three in a row for the first time since November 2020.
● Cameroon have made just two changes to their starting lineup across the first four matchdays of AFCON 2025 qualifying, fewer than any other team, with opponents Namibia making four times as many as the indomitable lions (8).
Liberia – Togo
● Liberia are winless in five AFCON qualifying matches (D2 L3), losing each of their last three. In fact. They’ve only won one of their last 11 such matches (2-0 against Djibouti in the preliminary round in March).
● Togo have lost their last two AFCON qualifiers, they haven’t lost three in a row since November 2019.
● No team have lost more points from winning positions than Togo (5) in AFCON 2025 qualifying.
Chad – Sierra Leone
● Chad have only won two of their last 14 AFCON qualifying matches (defeating Mauritius in both legs of the preliminary round in March, D4 L8), while they last won an AFCON qualifier in the main rounds in May 2014 (3-1 against Malawi).
● Sierra Leone beat reigning AFCON Champions Côte d’Ivoire last time out, thanks to Amadou Bakayoko’s 85th minute header, the Leone Stars last won consecutive AFCON qualifying matches in July 2014.
● Chad are the only team yet to score in AFCON 2025 qualifying, they’ve had 31 shots in total so far, with just seven on target – a shooting accuracy of just 23%.
THURSDAY 15 NOVEMBER
Madagascar – Tunisia
● Madagascar remain winless in 14 AFCON qualifying matches (D7 L7), since a 6-2 victory against Niger in November 2019.
● Having won their first two AFCON 2025 qualifiers, Tunisia have failed to win their last two games (D1 L1), they’ve not gone three consecutive AFCON qualifying matches without winning on record (since at least 2006).
● Tunisia have played 166 passes into the box in AFCON 2025 qualifying, at least 14 more than any other team, with all four of their goals so far coming from inside the box.
Burundi – Malawi
● Burundi have lost their last three qualifying matches for AFCON, only winning two of their last 10 such games (D2 L6).
● Malawi are one of three teams to lose their first four AFCON 2025 qualifiers, while the Flames are winless in their last nine AFCON qualifying matches, since a 2-1 victory against Ethiopia in June 2022.
● Burundi have conceded six goals via set-pieces in AFCON 2025 qualifying so far (2 pens, 3 from corners and one direct free-kick), more than any other team, while their three conceded via corners is also the most.
Benin – Nigeria
● Benin have lost their last three AFCON qualifiers against Nigeria, failing to score in their last two.
● Excluding their awarded match against Libya in matchday four, Nigeria are unbeaten in each of their last six AFCON qualifiers, winning five and keeping five clean sheets.
● Ademola Lookman has scored two of Nigeria’s four goals in AFCON 2025 qualifying so far, while for club and country this season he’s netted 10 goals in 16 matches in all competitions.
Rwanda – Libya
● Rwanda earned their first victory in 11 AFCON qualifiers last tie out against Benin (2-1), they haven’t won back-to-back matches in AFCON qualifying since June 2015.
● Libya are winless in their eight AFCON qualifying matches ( D2 L6, excluding the game awarded to Nigeria in MD4), failing to score in five of these matches and never scoring more than once in the others.
● Libya are averaging less than six shots per game (5.7) in AFCON 2025 qualifying so far, fewer than any other team.
Lesotho – Central African Republic
● Lesotho are winless in their last 10 AFCON qualifiers (D2 L8) since a 3-1 victory against the Seychelles in March 2022, failing to score in eight matches in this run.
● Central African Republic have lost five of their last six AFCON qualifiers (W1), failing to score in their last three.
● Sera Motebang is Lesotho’s only goalscorer in AFCON 2025 qualifying so far, he’s had more shots on target (4) than the rest of his teammates combined (3).
Equatorial Guinea – Algeria
● Having won their last two games in AFCON 2025 qualifying, Equatorial Guinea could win three consecutive matches in each of their last three qualifying campaigns for the Africa Cup of Nations.
● Algeria are one of five teams with a 100% win rate in AFCON 2025 qualifying; they’re unbeaten in qualifying for the AFCON in 18 matches (W14 D4), since a 1-0 defeat to Benin in October 2018.
● Only Morocco have scored more goals (14), more goals from open play (10) and more penalties (4) than Algeria (11 goals, 9 from open play, 2 penalties) in AFCON 2025 qualifying.
Niger – Sudan
● Niger are without a win in 13 AFCON qualifying matches (D4 L9) since a 1-0 victory against Ethiopia in November 2020, failing to score in nine of these games.
● Sudan’s goal keeper; Mohamed Mustafa has saved all 12 shots on target he’s faced in AFCON 2025 qualifying, the best 100% save percentage in the competition so far.
● The average age of Sudan’s starting XI in these African 2025 qualifiers is 29yrs 248d, the oldest in the competition so far, while opponents Niger have the second-youngest (24yrs 259d).
South Sudan – Congo
● South Sudan have lost four consecutive AFCON qualifiers for the first time since March 2019 (a run of 6), while they’re winless in each of their last nine (D2 L7).
● Congo have only won one of their last six AFCON qualifiers (D2 L3), a 1-0 victory against today’s opponents South Sudan in MD1 in September, only scoring once across their three matches since (D1 L2).
● Only Morocco (18) have made more changes to their starting XI across the first four matchdays of AFCON 2025 qualifying than South Sudan (17), while no team have used more players than the Bright Stars (28).
Burkina Faso – Senegal
● Senegal are unbeaten in their last six matches against Burkina Faso in all competitions (W2 D4), with both teams scoring in five of these matches.
● Senegal have had the most shots in AFCON 2025 qualifying so far (76), although they’ve only scored from 9.2% of their attempts (7/76), with 20 teams currently having a better shot conversion rate in the competition.
● Burkina Faso have scored four headed goals in AFCON 2025 qualifying so far, twice as many as any other team, with all four goals being scored by different players (Lassina Traoré, Dango Outtara, Issoufou Dayo and Mohamed Konaté).
FRIDAY 15 NOVEMBER
Gambia – Comoros
● Gambia have only lost one of their last seven AFCON qualifiers (W3 D3), scoring at least once in each game.
● Comoros are unbeaten in their last six AFCON qualifying matches (W2 D4), scoring exactly once in each game.
● Yankuba Minteh has been directly involved in three of Gambia’s four goals in AFCON 2025 qualifying so far (1 goal, 2 assists), while only Mozambique’s Geny Catamo (13) has completed more dribbles than the Gambian (12) in the competition.
Gabon – Morocco
● Since losing to Morocco (4-1) on matchday one, Gabon are unbeaten in their last three AFCON qualifiers (W2 D1), their longest such run without defeat since November 2020 (4 games, W2 D2)
● Morocco have scored the most goals (14) in the competition so far, while they have also outperformed their expected goals tally by more than four goals, the biggest such difference across the first four matchdays (14 goals, 9.9 xG).
● Gabon’s Dénis Bouanga had had the most shots (23) and shots on target (10) of any player so far in AFCON 2025 qualifying, although he’s yet to score a goal in the competition. Indeed, he’s been involved in more shot-ending sequences in open play (31) than any other player.
Cabo Verde – Egypt
● Cabo Verde have lost four of their last five AFCON qualifiers (W1), including a 3-0 defeat to Egypt in September.
● Egypt have won each of their last eight qualifying matches for the Africa Cup of Nations by an aggregate score of 19-1 since a 0-2 defeat to Ethiopia in June 2022.
● Trézéguet has scored (3) or assisted (1) four of Egypt’s last seven goals in AFCON qualifying, scoring with all three of his shots on target in this qualifying campaign.
Botswana – Mauritania
● Mauritania have won each of their last three AFCON qualifiers against Botswana, all by a margin of a single goal (2x 1-0 and 1x 2-1).
● Botswana have won both of their last two AFCON qualifiers (both 1-0 v Cabo Verde), more than their previous 10 beforehand (W1 D1 L8).
● Mauritania have lost each of their last three AFCON qualifying matches without scoring, as many defeats as their previous 13 such qualifiers beforehand (W6 D4 L3).
Angola – Ghana
● Angola have won all four of their qualifying matches for AFCON 2025, keeping three clean sheets in the process.
● Only Chad (0) have scored fewer goals and have a lower shot conversion rate in 2025 AFCON qualifying heading into the November fixtures than Ghana, who have just one goal from 51 shots (2.0% conversion).
● Ghana’s Mohammed Kudus has the highest expected goals tally (3.34) in AFCON 2025 qualifying so far, despite not yet scoring in the competition, having had 16 attempts at goal and missing more big chances than any other player (6).
Zambia – Côte d’Ivoire
● Côte d’Ivoire have won three of their last four meetings with Zambia in all competitions, with the other a 3-0 AFCON qualifying loss in June 2023.
● Zambia have only lost one of their last nine AFCON qualifiers (W6 D2), keeping a clean sheet in four of their last seven, including both of their last two. That defeat, however, was to Côte d’Ivoire in September.
● Côte d’Ivoire’s Jean-Philippe Krasso has been directly involved in five goals in his last eight AFCON qualifier appearances (4 goals, 1 assist) despite only starting four of them.
Mozambique – Mali
● Mozambique have won four and lost none of their last six AFCON qualifiers (D2), more wins than their previous 15 such games beforehand (W3 D4 L8).
● Mali haven’t conceded more than one goal in any of their last 15 AFCON qualifiers (5 goals conceded, 10 clean sheets) since a 2-2 draw with Guinea in November 2019. They have kept a clean sheet in each of their last three such fixtures.
● Mozambique’s Bruno Langa has more assists (4) than any player in 2025 AFCON qualifying heading into the November fixtures, setting up over half of his nation’s goals this campaign (4/7).
Eswatini – Guinea-Bissau
● Eswatini have failed to score in seven of their last eight matches in AFCON qualifiers (ex. preliminary round), scoring only in a 1-1 draw with Mozambique in October.
● Guinea-Bissau are without a win any of their last three AFCON qualifiers (D1 L2), and could fail to score in three successive such games for the first time since November 2020.
● Only Chad (32.7%) and South Sudan (33.8%) have averaged a lower amount of possession in AFCON 2025 qualifying than Eswatini (35.1%).
Zimbabwe – Kenya
● Zimbabwe are unbeaten in their previous six AFCON qualifiers (W2 D2); they last enjoyed a longer such run in June 2016 (W3 D3).
● Kenya have lost each of their last two AFCON qualifiers; they last lost three in succession in March 2016.
● 50% of Zimbabwe’s goals scored in AFCON 2025 qualifying have come via penalties (2/4), the joint-highest such proportion for a side in qualifying.
Uganda – South Africa
● Uganda have won each of their last three AFCON qualifiers, one more than in their previous 10 such outings (D3 L5).
● South Africa are unbeaten in their previous seven AFCON qualifiers (W4 D3), while they’re scored in each of their last eight such games (18 goals).
● Only Mozambique’s Bruno Langa (4) has more assists in AFCON 2025 qualifying than both Uganda’s Allan Okello and South Africa’s Oswin Appollis (both 3), with no player creating more chances than the South African in qualifying so far (12).
SATURDAY 16 NOVEMBER 2024
Guinea – DR Congo
● Guinea are looking to win three successive AFCON qualifiers for the first time since March 2023, though they did lose 1-0 the last time they played DR Congo in September.
● DR Congo have won each of their last eight AFCON qualifiers, scoring 16 goals and conceding none; by comparison they had only won two of their prior eight such games (D3 L3).
● Guinea’s Serhou Guirassy is the top goal scorer in AFCON 2025 qualifying, netting five goals from just six shots, despite only playing in two matches so far.
Ethiopia – Tanzania
● Ethiopia are winless in their last eight AFCON qualifiers (D2 L6), losing their last three such games by an aggregate score of 1-9.
● Tanzania have lost each of their last two AFCON qualifiers, both to DR Congo without scoring; they’ve not lost three successive such games before on record (since at least 2006).
● Only Congo (-4.23) and Central African Republic (-3.68) have a lower negative differential between goals conceded and expected goals conceded in AFCON 2025 qualifying than Ethiopia (-2.85, 9 goals conceded and 6.15 expected goals against).
AFCON
Motsepe Hails King Mohammed VI Over Royal Pardon of Jailed Senegalese Fans

Confederation of African Football president Patrice Motsepe has praised Morocco’s King Mohammed VI for what he described as a powerful gesture of unity and reconciliation following the royal pardon granted to Senegalese supporters convicted over offences linked to the final match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
In a statement released on Saturday, Motsepe expressed deep appreciation on behalf of CAF’s 54 member associations, hailing the Moroccan monarch’s decision as a demonstration of football’s ability to foster peace and solidarity across the continent.
“I would like to express our deep gratitude to His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist him, for granting His Royal Pardon to the Senegalese supporters convicted of offences relating to the final match of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025,” Motsepe stated.
The CAF president said the pardon reflected Morocco’s enduring commitment to African unity and highlighted football’s growing role as a bridge between nations and cultures.
“CAF has consistently emphasised its commitment to utilise football to contribute to uniting our people from different racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds,” he said.
“The pardon by His Majesty King Mohammed VI is an uplifting and motivating illustration of the power of football to unite and bring our people together in Africa and worldwide.”
Motsepe also revealed that during recent visits to both Morocco and Senegal, he had been struck by the deep historical and cultural bonds shared by the two countries.
“I was amazed and impressed when I was briefed about the historic and extensive ties between the people of Senegal and Morocco,” he added.
The statement further reinforced Morocco’s rising influence within African football, especially after successfully hosting the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and positioning itself as one of Africa’s leading football destinations ahead of the 2030 FIFA World Cup, which it will co-host with Spain and Portugal.
Motsepe also extended CAF’s best wishes to Africa’s representatives at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, expressing confidence that the continent’s teams would perform strongly on the global stage.
Among the African nations mentioned were Morocco, Senegal, Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Ghana, South Africa, Côte d’Ivoire, Cape Verde and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
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AFCON
Group I: Algeria Face Tough Challenge from Zambia in AFCON 2027 Qualifiers

By Kunle Solaja.
Former African champions Algeria and Zambia are set for an early showdown after the release of the Group I fixtures for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Algeria host Zambia on Matchday One on September 21, 2026, in what is expected to be one of the headline fixtures of the qualifying campaign, while Togo entertain Burundi in the group’s other opening tie.
The Desert Foxes are favourites to qualify, but Zambia’s growing consistency and Togo’s unpredictability could make the race highly competitive.
Algeria travel to Burundi on Matchday Two before facing Togo in back-to-back encounters across Matchdays Three and Four. Zambia also meet Burundi home and away during the same period.
The potentially decisive fixture comes on March 22, 2027, when Zambia host Algeria in a clash that could determine the final standings.
Group I Fixtures
Matchday 1 — September 21, 2026
- Algeria vs Zambia
- Togo vs Burundi
Matchday 2 — October 6, 2026
- Zambia vs Togo
- Burundi vs Algeria
Matchday 3 — October 2026
- Algeria vs Togo
- Zambia vs Burundi
Matchday 4 — November 17, 2026
- Togo vs Algeria
- Burundi vs Zambia
Matchday 5 — March 22, 2027
- Zambia vs Algeria
- Burundi vs Togo
Matchday 6 — March 30, 2027
- Togo vs Zambia
- Algeria vs Burundi
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AFCON
Group J: Senegal Begin AFCON 2027 Campaign Against Mozambique

By Kunle Solaja.
African heavyweights Senegal will launch their quest for another Africa Cup of Nations appearance with a home clash against Mozambique in Group J of the 2027 AFCON qualifiers.
The Lions of Teranga, among the continent’s strongest teams in recent years, headline a group that also includes Sudan and Ethiopia.
Senegal host Mozambique on Matchday One on September 21, 2026, while Sudan tackle Ethiopia in the other opening encounter.
Senegal are strong favourites to dominate the group, but Sudan and Mozambique are expected to battle fiercely for qualification points.
The key fixtures may emerge in the double-header between Senegal and Sudan across Matchdays Three and Four, while Mozambique and Ethiopia also face each other home and away.
Senegal travel to Mozambique on Matchday Five before ending their campaign at home against Ethiopia on March 30, 2027.
Group J Fixtures
Matchday 1 — September 21, 2026
- Senegal vs Mozambique
- Sudan vs Ethiopia
Matchday 2 — October 6, 2026
- Mozambique vs Sudan
- Ethiopia vs Senegal
Matchday 3 — October 2026
- Senegal vs Sudan
- Mozambique vs Ethiopia
Matchday 4 — November 17, 2026
- Sudan vs Senegal
- Ethiopia vs Mozambique
Matchday 5 — March 22, 2027
- Mozambique vs Senegal
- Ethiopia vs Sudan
Matchday 6 — March 30, 2027
- Sudan vs Mozambique
- Senegal vs Ethiopia
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