AFCON 2025: Nigeria, Morocco, Ivory Coast to be Top Seeds for Tournament Draw

The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) hosts Morocco, defending champions Ivory Coast, and Nigeria’s Super Eagles are expected to be among the top seeds for the tournament draw, scheduled to take place in Rabat on January 27.

According to a source within the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the seeding will likely be determined by the latest FIFA world rankings, with the December 2024 rankings playing a crucial role. CAF has traditionally relied on FIFA rankings to determine seedings for AFCON and World Cup draws.

The 24 teams in the tournament will be divided into six groups, each containing four teams. The top two teams from each group, along with the four best third-placed teams, will progress to the knockout stages. Although initially set for mid-2025, the tournament has been rescheduled to avoid a clash with the revamped Club World Cup. It will now begin on December 21, 2025, and conclude on January 18, 2026.

This will be the first time the biennial AFCON will span two calendar years, with Morocco previously hosting the tournament in 1988, when only eight teams participated. The Ivory Coast, who are the current title holders, triumphed in the 2023 edition, defeating Nigeria 2-1 in Abidjan, with Sebastien Haller scoring the decisive goal.

Likely Seeding for AFCON 2025:

• First Seed: Morocco (hosts), Senegal, Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria, Ivory Coast (defending champions)
• Second Seed: Cameroon, Mali, Tunisia, South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Burkina Faso
• Third Seed: Gabon, Angola, Zambia, Uganda, Equatorial Guinea, Benin
• Fourth Seed: Mozambique, Comoros, Tanzania, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Botswana