Kenya to face Cameroon in race for AFCON 2025 ticket

Kenya missed out on qualification for the 2023 edition due to FIFA ban in 2022, and will be seeking a place at the next year’s showpiece against the Indomitable Lions in Group J.

The group also has two Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) members Zimbabwe and Namibia.

The group winners and runners-up qualify for the finals set to be held from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026 in Morocco.

Originally scheduled for mid 2025, the Cup of Nations had to be delayed to avoid a clash with the new-look Club World Cup in the United States.

There will be two qualifying match days in September, two in October and the final two in November this year.

Shock 2022 World Cup semi-finalists Morocco are automatic qualifiers as hosts, but will face Gabon, the Central African Republic and Lesotho in Group B to gain competitive match practice.

The presence of the Moroccan Atlas Lions means only the highest placed of the other three countries will advance to the 24-nation tournament, which kicks off on December 21 next year.

Group A: Tunisia, Madagascar, Comoros, The Gambia

Group B: Morocco, Gabon, Central African Republic, Lesotho

Group C: Egypt, Cape Verde, Mauritania, Botswana

Group D: Nigeria, Benin, Libya, Rwanda

Group E: Algeria, Equatorial Guinea, Togo, Liberia

Group F: Ghana, Angola, Sudan, Niger

Group G: Ivory Coast, Zambia, Sierra Leone, Chad

Group H: DR Congo, Guinea, Tanzania, Ethiopia

Group I: Mali, Mozambique, Guinea Bissau, Eswatini

Group J: Cameroon, Namibia, Kenya, Zimbabwe

Group K: South Africa, Uganda, Congo, South Sudan

Group L: Senegal, Burkina Faso, Malawi, Burundi.