AFCON
Nigeria Aim To Deny Hosts Cote D’Ivoire In AFCON Final –
Victor Osimhen’s Nigeria stand in the way of Cote d’Ivoire in Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations final, as the tournament hosts aim to complete the most remarkable of turnarounds by lifting the trophy.
The most thrilling AFCON in recent memory concludes at the Ebimpe Olympic Stadium, on the dusty outskirts of Abidjan, with a heavyweight showdown between two West African footballing powerhouses.
Eleven years after they were last crowned continental champions, Nigeria are hoping to win their fourth title, and in doing so match the tally of old rivals Ghana.
Cote d’Ivoire, meanwhile, will join the Super Eagles on three titles if they become the first host nation to lift the trophy since Egypt beat them on penalties in 2006.
Their journey just to get to this stage has been unlike almost anything that has come before in the history of major international tournament football.
After beating Guinea-Bissau 2-0 in the opening game on January 13, things began to go awry when they lost 1-0 to Nigeria in a close-fought encounter five days later.
The Elephants then found themselves on the brink of becoming just the second Cup of Nations hosts in the last 30 years to be eliminated in the group stage after a humiliating 4-0 loss to Equatorial Guinea.
It was their heaviest ever home defeat, and it cost veteran French coach Jean-Louis Gasset his job.
Yet a combination of favourable results elsewhere allowed them to squeeze through to the last 16 as the last of the four best third-placed teams.
– ‘Like a dream’ –
Former player Emerse Fae became interim coach after an audacious attempt to hire Herve Renard on a short-term deal failed, and Cote d’Ivoire ousted holders Senegal on penalties in his first game.
A crazy quarter-final followed, with the 10-man Ivorians beating Mali 2-1 thanks to a winning goal in added time in extra time.
In his first start of the tournament after injury, Sebastien Haller then scored the only goal in a 1-0 defeat of the Democratic Republic of Congo in the last four, taking Ivory Coast into their first final since they won the trophy under Renard in 2015.
“It’s like a dream, when you go back two weeks to the defeat here against Equatorial Guinea,” said Fae after the semi-final.
“It was hard then to imagine that we might qualify for the final of our own AFCON.”
Yet they have done it, and so like in their last final appearance in 2013 — when they defeated Burkina Faso in South Africa — Nigeria will play in the tournament’s deciding game against a side they also faced in the group stage.
That 1-0 win over the Ivorians, when captain William Troost-Ekong netted a penalty, was what kickstarted the Super Eagles’ campaign here.
They had come into the tournament hampered by a succession of injury call-offs, and with a coach who had been the target of stinging criticism back home.
– Tactical switch –
A 1-1 draw with Equatorial Guinea in their first game did little to ease the pressure on veteran Portuguese tactician Jose Peseiro, but a switch to a three-man central defence paid dividends against the Ivorians and he has stuck with that system since.
As a result, Nigeria recorded four straight wins — all with clean sheets — on the way to the semi-final, when they beat South Africa on penalties after a 1-1 draw.
Napoli star Osimhen, the reigning African footballer of the year, is now just one game away from being an AFCON winner in what has often been a frustrating tournament for the 25-year-old.
He struck 10 times in qualifying, but has not scored in Cote d’Ivoire since netting in the opening game, although he has had three goals disallowed.
Nevertheless, Osimhen’s tireless performances have been eye-catching, and in any case the masked striker has always insisted that collective glory is all that matters.
“I always say this — it has been with me since growing up — I need to win something with the Super Eagles,” Osimhen told broadcaster Canal Plus Afrique.
“Football is one of the only things that brings joy to the country. We know a lot of people have had to work so hard just to be able to watch this game.
“I am really happy that we are able to put smiles on their faces. Now we have one more final to go and we will give everything to try to win it.”
-AFP
The African Football Confederation (CAF) and Royal Air Maroc (RAM) have sealed a historic strategic partnership that grants Morocco’s national airline the status of “Official Global Partner” for upcoming major African football competitions.
The agreement was signed Saturday morning in Casablanca, in the presence of Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) President Fouzi Lekjaâ.
This partnership encompasses several prestigious tournaments, including the CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco (AFCON) 2025 (December 21, 2025 – January 18, 2026) and CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations Morocco (WAFCON) 2024 (July 5-26, 2025).
The agreement also covers CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations 2025, CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations 2025, CAF Champions League 2024/2025 Finals, CAF Confederation Cup 2024/2025 Finals, and the CAF Women’s Champions League 2025.
CAF President Patrice Motsepe voiced enthusiasm about the collaboration.
“We are excited about the partnership between CAF and Royal Air Maroc, a world-class airline that will provide comfort and fly NationalTeams participating in the CAF competitions,” he said.
“We are confident that the CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 will be the most successful AFCON in the history of this competition.”
The agreement strengthens RAM’s footprint across Africa and globally, solidifying its role as a strategic gateway between Africa and the rest of the world. It also aligns with Morocco’s emergence as an international sports hub, with the country preparing to host AFCON 2025 and co-host the FIFA World Cup 2030.
RAM’s Chairman and CEO Hamid Addou stated: “This historic partnership with CAF aligns fully with our strategic vision as an airline deeply rooted in Africa and committed to its development.”
“Royal Air Maroc doesn’t just connect destinations; it builds bridges between cultures and passions. By supporting the continent’s biggest football competitions, we reaffirm our role as a facilitator of human and sporting exchanges,” he continued.
500,000 supporters expected
Beyond its partnership role, RAM will implement an exceptional operational system to meet increased demand during CAF competitions. The airline plans to welcome over 500,000 supporters for AFCON 2025.
“We believe we will surpass this figure by far,” revealed Addou. “We will be ready to accommodate these supporters across Royal Air Maroc’s entire network.”
The airline intends to double seat capacity from qualified countries already served by RAM, such as Dakar, Abidjan, Cairo, Tunis, Bamako, Lagos, and Douala.
RAM will also intensify flight frequencies from European cities with large African communities, including Paris, Brussels, Milan, London, Marseille, Lyon, Madrid, and Barcelona.
Additionally, the airline will establish a dedicated program for domestic air transport of national teams, shuttling them between their base camps and host cities.
This positioning establishes RAM as the primary connector between Africa and Europe through its Casablanca hub. FRMF President Fouzi Lekjaâ noted that the contract “reinforces Royal Air Maroc’s first-rate leadership role in Africa.”
“Royal Air Maroc is no stranger to football,” Lekjaâ added. “It has always supported generations of our athletes and footballers here in Morocco.”
“With this expertise and experience, they will contribute significantly to making AFCON 2025 Morocco exceptional, a historic turning point in African football, cultural coexistence and African cultural exchange,” he concluded.
Addou stressed RAM’s commitment to African unity: “We are all extremely proud to be African, and in every corner of this vast and magnificent continent, we share the same ambition—to actively contribute to Africa’s development and influence.”
The RAM CEO concluded by inviting everyone to upcoming CAF calendar events: “We’ll see you very soon for the great moments ahead in the CAF calendar, particularly the Women’s AFCON starting in July and, of course, the men’s AFCON, which kicks off on December 25.”
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The presidents of the regional councils concerned by the hosting of the matches of the Africa Cup of Nations (Morocco-2025) unanimously affirmed that the implementation of infrastructure projects in anticipation of this continental event “is progressing at a sustained pace”, declaring themselves “fully mobilized” to crown with success the major sporting events scheduled in the Kingdom.
They specified, in statements to the press in Rabat following a meeting at the headquarters of the Ministry of the Interior devoted to the assessment of the progress of the construction and rehabilitation works of the stadiums, that major sports infrastructure projects are underway in the six host cities: Rabat, Casablanca, Tangier, Fez, Marrakech and Agadir.
The President of the Casablanca-Settat Regional Council, Abdellatif Maâzouz, announced that the projects planned for upcoming international sporting events, in particular the 2025 African Cup of Nations and the 2030 World Cup, “are proceeding under good conditions.”
The projects related to the organisation of the AFCON will be ready by next July at the latest, he assured, specifying that there is a clear vision regarding the preparations underway for the AFCON and the 2030 World Cup, both in terms of equipment and organisational arrangements related to human resources and animation.
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AFCON
‘Land of Football’ is ‘Kingdom of Light’ as Moroccan Tourism Office and Football Federation Strike Accord
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
Morocco’s football federation and tourism office have signed a groundbreaking agreement to establish the country as a major football and tourism destination leading to the milestone 2030 World Cup when the global football tournament clocks a century.
The Moroccan football body and the Tourism Office are building on the national team’s recent international success.
Though with just one success in the Africa Cup of Nations, Moroccan football soars higher than the rest in Africa and the Arab world at the World Cup.
Apart from being the only African and Arab country to have reached the World Cup semi-final stage, Morocco in the 1970 World Cup in Mexico became the first African team not to be defeated in a World Cup match when they forced Bulgaria to a 1-1 draw on 11 June.
Again, in Mexico, this time at the 1986 World Cup, Morocco became the first African team to top a group and cross the group stage.
They were just two minutes away from a major upset of West Germany in the round of 16 before Lothar Matthäus’ back-breaking goal.
The success of the football team and the tourism potential of Morocco have found a harmonious chord.
The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) and the National Moroccan Tourism Office (ONMT) will work together under the banner “Morocco, Land of Football,” placing the sport at the heart of the country’s tourism strategy.
“More than an institutional partnership, this convention is a shared vision: that of a Morocco that shines through football and makes it a lever for promotion, pride and tourist attractiveness,” ONMT said in a statement released after the signing.
The timing of this collaboration is strategic, coming ahead of two major sporting events: the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and the 2030 FIFA World Cup, which Morocco will co-host with Spain and Portugal.
The initiative builds on widespread public enthusiasm following the Atlas Lions’ historic World Cup performance in 2022.
Under the agreement, both organizations will implement an integrated communication strategy combining visibility campaigns, influence marketing, and joint promotional activities.
The initiative will mobilize iconic figures from Moroccan football to bring this vision to life, to showcase the country’s world-class sporting facilities, rich cultural heritage, and diverse tourist attractions.
ONMT has launched a major offensive at making Morocco, the ultimate tourism and business destination as the clock ticks down to the 35th Africa Cup of Nations holding in December.
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