The roar returns to Rabat as the Africa Cup of Nations 2025 kicks off in Morocco, a tournament framed by towering expectations for the hosts and a reshaped calendar that stretches into the New Year with a final set for January 18. This is more than a football festival, it is a referendum on momentum, resilience and the continent’s evolving place in a crowded global game. The streets will supply the soundtrack, but the shifting calendar and a captain rushing against time give this edition its heartbeat.
Hakimi’s race against the clock becomes a national storyline
In Morocco the most scrutinized ankle on the continent belongs to Achraf Hakimi, the captain and reigning African player of the year. After a sprain sustained against Bayern Munich in November, the Paris Saint-Germain star ditched his surgical boot and arrived in Rabat with medical staff from his club, a sign of how delicately his recovery is being managed and how much hope he carries for the Atlas Lions.
Hakimi said he feels ready to contribute, even if his minutes are carefully controlled, telling reporters, “I feel good,” and “If I only play one minute and the team wins, then that’s fine.” Coach Walid Regragui has been firm about patience, saying he will not take risks with his leader, which could mean missing some or all of the group stage while aiming for a return when the round of 16 begins on January 3, a timetable that would suit a measured, team-first approach.
Morocco carry form, history and expectation
Morocco enter ranked Africa’s best in 11th place in the FIFA standings and riding a world record 18 consecutive victories, a run that speaks to discipline, depth and a belief forged since that trailblazing World Cup semifinal in 2022. Yet history nags, the nation has lifted this trophy only once, in 1976, and the impatience of nearly five decades feeds the pressure that Regragui openly embraces.
The hosts begin against Comoros at the new 69,000 seat Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, then face Mali on December 26 and Zambia on December 29, all in the same arena. Supporters renowned as among the continent’s most passionate will fill venues across Rabat, Tangier, Casablanca, Marrakesh, Agadir and Fez, a showcase of stadiums that double as a statement of intent before the 2030 World Cup that Morocco will co-host with Spain and Portugal, a stage perfectly set for a home surge.
The field that stands in the way
Senegal bring the sheen of 2022 champions and the cutting edge of Sadio Mane, a combination that makes them perennial contenders. Defending champions Ivory Coast arrive with pedigree and nerve, even as they absorb a heavy blow with Sebastien Haller ruled out by a hamstring injury, prompting a call for Evann Guessand from Aston Villa to bolster the Elephants’ Premier League contingent.
Egypt travel with Mohamed Salah and the gravitational pull of a record seven titles, a storyline complicated by uncertainty around his club future but strengthened by a sense of unfinished business. Nigeria, runners-up last year, will look to Victor Osimhen’s ruthless finishing and the leadership of Wilfred Ndidi, who has been named captain, as they begin Group C against Tanzania in Fes before meeting Tunisia and Uganda, a path that could turn the Super Eagles into this tournament’s most dangerous chasers.
Algeria adjust after Houssem Aouar’s withdrawal due to injury, turning to Himad Abdelli of Angers ahead of Group F assignments against Sudan, Burkina Faso and Equatorial Guinea in Rabat. Zambia’s bench carries its own subplot, with head coach Moses Sichone lacking the required CAF qualifications to sit as head coach and officials exploring a shift to assistant coach status to meet eligibility rules, a reminder that off-field details can shape on-field calm, especially for a Group A side that must face Morocco.
Elsewhere, Cameroon and Gabon share Group F with Ivory Coast and Mozambique, a quartet that promises intensity in Marrakesh. Ghana and Cape Verde are both World Cup bound but are not present in Morocco, a quirk of this cycle that subtly tilts the competitive balance and widens opportunity for others looking to break through while the noise of the hosts dominates the narrative.
A tournament squeezed by the calendar
This AFCON is a product of compromise with a global calendar that leaves little breathing room. The expanded FIFA Club World Cup in June and July closed one window, the 2026 World Cup squeezed another, and UEFA’s revamped Champions League format complicated the traditional January and February slot, pushing Africa’s showpiece to a December kickoff that rolls into January.
The adjustment comes with ripple effects, since many European leagues pause while the Premier League carries on with a dense festive schedule. FIFA allowed clubs to keep players until December 15, a late release that has hampered some preparations but also reflects the desire, as CAF president Patrice Motsepe put it, for more synchronisation so that the global calendar is more in harmony and the best African players can be present for their countries.
AFCON’s future reshaped
In Rabat, Motsepe announced a pivot that will redefine the rhythm of African international football, the Cup of Nations will shift to a four year cycle after a planned 2028 edition. That timeline follows the 2027 tournament in East Africa, which will be hosted by Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda, then the 2028 event that will be opened to a fresh bidding process, a reset that aligns with global demands while preserving the tournament’s stature.
The financial engine for national associations will increasingly be the new African Nations League from 2029, launched after the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup and designed on a regional basis to reduce travel and increase competition. The format begins with 16 teams each in east, west and central southern zones and six in the northern zone, with matches in September and October and a finals event in November, a structure that promises more prize money, more resources and more high level games, a steady drumbeat that could keep stadiums full and coffers healthier.
CAF has also boosted the stakes for the current tournament, raising the winners’ prize money to 10 million dollars, up from seven million in Ivory Coast in 2024. That figure adds edge to every knockout night and signals a governing body intent on underlining the prestige of this competition even as it embraces a new cadence, a balance of tradition and change that could shape how stars plan seasons and how federations plan budgets.
The host factor and the weight of history
Being host can be a blessing or a burden. Since 2000, only Tunisia, Egypt in 2006 and Ivory Coast in 2024 turned home support into the title, a statistic that tempers assumptions and underlines how unforgiving this tournament can be when expectations spike and margins narrow.
Still, there is a regional pattern that should comfort the Atlas Lions, North African teams have won four of the last five editions held in the region, including Algeria’s victory in Egypt in 2019. Morocco’s supporters, among Africa’s most passionate and partisan, will add heat to that trend, and recent triumphs, from the Under 20 World Cup to the FIFA Arab Cup win against Jordan in Doha, have kept a winning mood alive on the streets, a powerful wind at the back of a contender.
Stadiums built to impress and inspire
Morocco’s infrastructure is part of the story, the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, which hosts the opener and the final, is one of four venues in the capital alone. A 75,000 seat arena in Tangier will host a semifinal, while Casablanca, Marrakesh, Agadir and Fez provide a national footprint that underscores the country’s readiness for the world stage in 2030, a football map that doubles as a blueprint for legacy.
Opening against Comoros, then Mali and Zambia, the hosts will need to manage emotion and expectation in equal measure. The group should provide a runway into the knockouts, yet Mali’s threat is real and the tournament has a way of turning certainty into suspense, especially when opponents find joy in spoiling a party carried by home noise.
What this means for the players and the fans
For stars who crisscross continents, these weeks are a reclaiming of identity, a return to the flags that first lit the dream. Motsepe’s emphasis on making the calendar more harmonious speaks to a future in which clubs and countries pull in the same direction, a practical shift that could protect careers and enrich every AFCON.
For supporters, the promise is simple, a December curtain rise that rolls into a January climax, a better chance to see their heroes in full flow, and a tournament that recognizes the realities of Europe’s schedules without losing its soul. For Morocco, the promise is personal, from Hakimi’s fitness to Regragui’s declaration that victory is the only acceptable outcome, the stakes are set in bold, the journey is now.
The bottom line
Morocco enter this Africa Cup of Nations with form, fervor and the kind of talent that can carry a nation, but the quest is laced with pressure and the calendar is a quiet opponent. Rivals are lurking, from Senegal’s steel to Egypt’s pedigree and Nigeria’s firepower, while injuries and disruptions have already bent trajectories for Ivory Coast and Algeria.
Whatever the final reckoning, this edition will be remembered for its dual storylines, a host chasing redemption and a continent choosing a new rhythm for its crown jewel. If the Atlas Lions can channel the noise and navigate the nerves, then the long wait since 1976 could end in Rabat, if not, the reshaped future that Motsepe mapped out ensures the next chase will unfold in a calendar that finally feels like it belongs to Africa.
