The 35th edition of the AFCON is well underway in Morocco, and it has so far been a worthy spectacle for fans who have traveled to North Africa and those watching from other destinations.
The opening fixtures saw a lot of historical stakes, with the so-called favourites having a jinx to break while the underdogs weren’t in it to save faces but to kickstart a fairytale, the dream of such nations in every outing.
However, round 1 of the group games held no prisoners. The football was lively, the majority of it competitive, as every nation wishes to start with an impression, especially in fixtures they’ve been completely ruled out of. But in the end, those who were given the edge ultimately delivered.
From Morocco overcoming a half of misfortunes before finally putting Comoros in their place to individual brilliance that highlights the games involving nations like Egypt, Nigeria, and Senegal, here is a recap of all the best actions from the opening rounds of the AFCON 2025.
AFCON 2025: Round 1 Reviews
Morocco overcame early adversity to tame Comoros
Tournament hosts Morocco began their AFCON 2025 campaign with a clinical 2-0 victory over Comoros in Rabat. Second-half goals from Brahim Diaz and Ayoub El Kaabi delivered an important victory, especially after the misfortunes of the first half.
Soufiane Rahimi missed a penalty while Romain Saiss was taken off injured in the opening 20 minutes, but the Atlas Lions opened the scoring through Brahim Diaz five minutes before the hour mark, before Ayoub El Kaabi sealed the points late on.
The Atlas Lions dominated possession, leaving the visitors struggling to find a rhythm. However, they had to be patient before putting themselves in the right places to finish off their chances.
Morocco’s manager, Walid Regragui, praised his team’s focus but noted areas for improvement. “It was important to start with three points at home,” Regragui stated. The hosts now sit comfortably atop the group standings heading into the second round.
Daka’s late header denied dominant Mali
Daka’s late header denied dominant Mali
Patson Daka scored a late header to help Zambia secure a dramatic 1-1 draw against Mali in their AFCON 2025 opener on Monday.
A dominant Mali side was awarded a late first-half penalty, but El Bilal Toure saw his effort well saved by goalkeeper Willard Mwanza, who could not prevent Lassine Sinayoko from breaking the deadlock a minute after the hour mark.
Mali appeared headed for victory in the closing stages but were punished by a relentless Zambian side, who leveled the scoring deep in stoppage time through a powerful header from striker Patson Daka.
South Africa up and running with Angola’s win
South Africa commenced their AFCON 2025 journey with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Angola thanks to Lyle Foster’s late goal in Marrakech.
On the occasion of Hugo Broos’ 50th game, Bafana Bafana took the lead with what was the fastest goal of the tournament at the time, with Oswin Appollis firing into the bottom corner under the shield of teammate, Lyle Foster in the 21st minute.
Angola responded from a set-piece five minutes after the half-hour as Show flicked Fredy’s free-kick, beating Ronwen Williams to his near post, but South Africa ultimately sealed the win with Lyle Foster’s 79th-minute strike.
Egypt left it late in comeback win
Record winners Egypt also kicked off their campaign with an impressive comeback win against a stubborn Zimbabwe team, who became the first team to lose after scoring the first goal so far in Morocco.
Despite being heavily dominated, the Warriors took a shocking early lead in the 20th minute, as midfielder Prince Dube found space in the box and guided a low shot into the bottom corner.
The lead lasted until four minutes after the hour mark, when Omar Marmoush scored a beautiful strike from a difficult angle to restore parity, before Mohamed Salah finally scored a deserved goal to complete the comeback in the first minute of added time.
DR Congo edge Benin in controversial clash
The Democratic Republic of Congo kick off their AFCON journey with a narrow win over the Benin Republic, who will be angered and rightly so after being denied a late penalty due to technical issues.
World Cup hopefuls, DR Congo scored the only goal of the game through Theo Bongonda just 16 minutes into the contest, after Benin failed to deal with a long ball into the heart of their defence.
Bongonda reacted the quickest to the loose ball and nicked it beyond the goalkeeper. Benin had a potential penalty at the death but the referee could not review the incident as the VAR at the stadium was not functioning. Tough luck.
Nicolas Jackson led Senegal to win
Nicolas Jackson bagged a brace in Senegal’s opening game of the AFCON 2025 to send the team on their way to a comfortable 3-0 win over Botswana, sending a statement of intent to other challengers for the crown.
The 2021 winners were dominant throughout and were never in any real danger of losing. After missing a glorious opportunity earlier in the game, Jackson superbly finished a cutback from Ismail Jakobs to break the deadlock five minutes before the break.
He made it 2-0 with a shot into the bottom corner two minutes from the hour mark, but the man who took his place as a 78th-minute substitute, Cherif Ndiaye, completed the 3-0 win on the stroke of 90th minutes.
Alex Iwobi inspired Nigeria to beat Tanzania
Alex Iwobi set up two goals, becoming the first Nigerian to assist two goals in a single AFCON game since Kanu Nwankwo in 2000, to help Super Eagles conquer a stubborn Tanzania.
Clearly the favourite, the three-time African champions dominated from the start, but could not fashion genuine opportunities, as Tanzania defended well and cleared every danger without complications.
Semi Ajayi headed home Alex Iwobi’s cross to break the deadlock in the 36th minute, but the visitors hit back five minutes after the restart through Charles M’Mombwa, just a few minutes after Victor Osimhen’s goal was ruled out on the other end.
However, Tanzania was level for only two minutes as Ademola Lookman restored the lead with a sensational strike from the edge of the box, with the assist also going to Alex Iwobi, and Eric Chelle’s team held on for a winning start in Morocco.
Tunisia ends winless opening day run
After failing to win in any of their previous five opening matches of the African Cup of Nations, Tunisia finally ended the jinx by extending their 100 percent record in meetings with Uganda.
The Carthage Eagles have won all six of their historical meetings with the Cranes heading into their clash on Tuesday night, and their dominance was to know no end as Copenhagen winger Elias Achouri inspired them to a 3-1 victory with a brace.
Ellyes Skhiri’s 10th-minute opener was doubled by Achouri five minutes before the break. The 26-year-old completed his brace four minutes after the hour mark, while half-time substitute Denis Omedi grabbed a late consolation for Uganda in a 3-1 defeat.
Burkina Faso stages a comeback to relish
Burkina Faso has to dig deep to get the better of 10-man Equatorial Guinea, who threatened to take all three points despite going a man down five minutes after the restart with the score still level.
Despite their dominant display even before the red card, the Stallions fell behind five minutes from time, when Marvin Anieboh scored three minutes after coming off the bench to shock the favourite.
However, the 2013 beaten finalist responded just in time thanks to goals from Georgi Minoungou and Edmond Tapsoba in the fifth and final minute of the eight added to achieve a remarkable comeback, and kick off their AFCON campaign with all three points.
Historical Mahrez inspired Algeria to win
Riyad Mahrez scored a brace, the first of which saw him become the highest scoring Algerian in history of the African Cup of Nations, as the 2019 winners ease past Sudan in their opening game.
Mahrez opened the scoring with the quickest goal so far in the ongoing tournament, beating the goalkeeper after just two minutes for his record-breaking seventh AFCON goal, and doubled the advantage one minute after the hour mark.
The win was sealed by substitute Ibrahim Maza five minutes from time, with Baghdad Bounedjah setting him up to join Hicham Boudaoui and Mohamed Amoura on the list of assisters in the game.
Amad’s lone strike enough for defending champions
Defending champions Ivory Coast got their campaign off to a winning start thanks to an early second-half goal from Manchester United winger Amad Diallo against Mozambique.
The Elephant created a lot of dangerous attacks in the first half but could not convert any of the chances until Amad fired home a Franck Kessie header down four minutes after the restart.
That proved to be the only goal that separated both teams, as the Ivory Coast made it back-to-back wins in this fixture after winning their last one in November 2021 during the World Cup qualifiers.
Cameroon edge Gabon
In the final game of the first round of group games, Etta Eyong’s sixth-minute goal was the difference as Cameroon secured a decisive win against a tough opposition in Gabon.
The Levante striker beat the offside line to convert a pass from Bryan Mbeumo, and was cleared after the goal was reviewed for a possible offside by the VAR.
Kehinde-Hassan Afolabi
