The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations opens on Dec. 21 in Morocco, with 24 nations contesting the continent\u2019s premier international prize. Seven different winners since 2010 underline how open the competition remains and why identifying a single favourite before kick-off is difficult.<\/p>\n
Nigeria arrive as one of the most talked-about attacking teams. With Victor Osimhen, Ademola Lookman, Alex Iwobi and Samuel Chukwueze, the Super Eagles possess game-changing forwards and a vibrant offensive profile. \u00c9ric Chelle\u2019s side can rely on a strong supporting cast in midfield, but defensive concerns persist. Fulham\u2019s Calvin Bassey and Porto\u2019s Zaidu Sanusi are the clearest options at the back, while a rearguard that includes three English Championship defenders will be tested. Stanley Nwabali is not viewed as an elite goalkeeper and Nigeria\u2019s failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup adds pressure and incentive for redemption.<\/p>\n
Algeria retain status among the contenders despite inconsistent recent tournaments. The 2019 champions failed to progress from the group stage in both 2021 and 2023 and have not won a match at three of the last four editions. Riyad Mahrez remains the squad\u2019s creative fulcrum; the 34-year-old has slowed since leaving Manchester City for Al Ahli but still offers quality. Wolfsburg\u2019s Mohamed Amoura led CAF World Cup qualifying with ten goals and averages a goal every two international appearances. Rayan A\u00eft-Nouri and Ramy Bensebaini anchor an unspectacular defence, but Vladimir Petkovi\u0107 brings experienced coaching that could carry Algeria deep into the event.<\/p>\n
Egypt depend heavily on Mohamed Salah, who will aim to deliver the country\u2019s first title since 2010. Egypt were beaten finalists in 2017 and lost to Senegal on penalties in 2021, experiences that will motivate Hossam Hassan\u2019s side. Omar Marmoush has shared attacking duties and the squad benefits from cohesion: eight players represent Al Ahly and a further nine play for Pyramids or Zamalek.<\/p>\n
Senegal arrive as recent winners and remain a potent force. Pape Thiaw has helped revive the Lions of Teranga after a disappointing 2023. Senegal went unbeaten in 2026 World Cup qualifying and secured a place in a group with France and Norway. A summer 3\u20131 victory over England at Wembley and a competitive defeat to Brazil in November signalled form. Twenty of the 27-man roster play in Europe\u2019s top five leagues; Kalidou Koulibaly, \u00c9douard Mendy and Sadio Man\u00e9 provide experience despite moves to the Saudi Pro League. Iliman Ndiaye, Isma\u00efla Sarr and Nicolas Jackson lead the attack while Idrissa Gueye and Pape Matar Sarr offer midfield balance. These four nations are obvious candidates, but the tournament\u2019s history suggests surprises remain possible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
AFCON 2025 begins Dec. 21 in Morocco; Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt and Senegal lead the favorites. Watch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5223,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[961,646],"tags":[1211],"class_list":["post-5224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","category-trophy","tag-africa-cup-of-nations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5224"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5224\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}