Nigeria and Ghana, two of Africa’s fiercest footballing rivals, have been placed in different groups for the 2025 U20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), set to be hosted by Côte d’Ivoire, Soccernet.ng reports.
Seven-time champions Nigeria will battle in the AFCON U20 Group B against former winners Egypt and Morocco, alongside 1997 runners-up South Africa.
Meanwhile, Ghana find themselves in Group A with hosts Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Tanzania, and an as-yet-undetermined qualifier from the UNIFFAC region.
Nigeria, who lost to Ghana in the 1999 final, are the tournament’s most decorated team, boasting seven titles to Ghana’s four. Both sides have two silver medals, but the Flying Eagles have clinched bronze four times—twice more than the Black Satellites.
With three former champions and an unpredictable South African side in Group B, Ghana’s head coach, Desmond Ofei, is relieved his team avoided the tougher draw.
“We’re happy that we’re not in Group B because that’s a very interesting group,” Ofei told Joy News Prime Sports.
“I feel like we’re in a position where we can control the narrative of this tournament from our perspective.”
Ghana, however, will have to contend with an extra match due to the five-team structure of Group A.
“The only downside is that we’re in a group of five, meaning we’ll play one more game than teams in the other groups,” Ofei added. “But overall, I think we’re in a good position to manage the situation.”
Nigeria remain a potential obstacle for Ghana
Despite avoiding Nigeria in the group stage, Ghana could still face their West African rivals later in the tournament.
The top four teams will qualify for the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup, meaning a knockout-stage showdown remains a possibility.
“This could be the most exciting tournament in U20 AFCON history,” Ofei remarked.
“Many teams are investing in international players. Take DR Congo, for example—they have Belgian-based players in their squad. There are no easy teams, with big guns like Nigeria, Morocco, Egypt, Senegal, Gambia, and South Africa all involved.”
Both Ghana and Nigeria qualified for the tournament through the WAFU-B region, with Nigeria defeating Ghana 2-1 in last year’s final.
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We win!
Fulltime in Lome
Ghana 1-2 Nigeria
Kparobo Arierhi’s two goals in the final hands Nigeria the WAFU B U20 title.#SoarFlyingEagles pic.twitter.com/vGu1UYzc6r
— The NFF (@thenff) October 30, 2024
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Ofei, however, believes fatigue played a role in that defeat, as Ghana had to play an extra match in the qualifiers.
A similar scenario could unfold, as Ghana’s five-team group means an additional game compared to Nigeria’s four-team setup. Ofei, though, insists his side will be better prepared this time.
“I think we’re in a very good position. If we prepare well, we have everything in our hands to go as far as possible,” Ofei told Flashscore.
“I’m really okay with the draw. The only unfortunate thing for me is that we’re in a group of five, which was an issue in WAFU qualification. We had to play one more game than Nigeria, and we felt it in the final. But this time, we’ll manage the situation better. A strong bench will be crucial—we need to rotate wisely in such a demanding tournament.”
The tournament will kick off on April 26, with the final set for May 18. A total of 13 teams will compete in this year’s edition, all vying for a spot in the FIFA U20 World Cup later in the year.