AFCON U-20: Defending champions Senegal drawn with Ghana

@CAF_Online/X

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has released the final draw of the TotalEnergies 2025 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations to be hosted in Egypt this month.

The final draw for the competition was held on Sunday, 13 April, at the Egyptian Football Association headquarters in Cairo. The tournament, scheduled to run from 27 April to 18 May 2025, will see 13 nations slug it out for continental supremacy with four qualification spots to the FIFA U-20 World Cup to be held in Chile later this year.

The draw pairs hosts Egypt, who are four-time African champions in Group A, against Zambia, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Tanzania in what is described as one of the “groups of death.”

The Group B paints a very interesting picture as seven-time champions Nigeria have been drawn against former winners Tunisia, as well as Kenya and Morocco, setting the tone for a crack battle in the tournament’s most anticipated matches.

Defending champions Senegal will kick off their title defence in Group C, against Central African Republic, DR Congo and Ghana. Ghana come in with interesting experience having swept the WAFU, Africa and the World Cup in Nigeria, Rwanda and Egypt in 2009, the same year they became the only African team to win the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

The TotalEnergies CAF U-20 AFCON Egypt 2025 will follow a three-group format. Group A contains five teams, while Groups B and C feature four teams each. The top two teams from each pool, along with the two best third-placed teams, will progress to the quarter-finals, with the tournament concluding on 18 May 2025. The four semifinalists will represent Africa at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, Chile 2025.

Groups for the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations, Egypt 2025;

Group A: Egypt, Zambia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania

Group B: Nigeria, Tunisia, Kenya, Morocco

Group C: Senegal, Central African Republic, DR Congo, Ghana.