The Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) draw, set for Thursday in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, could lead to Nigeria, South Africa, and Morocco being placed in the same group.
Morocco, a top seed, achieved a historic feat at the 2022 World Cup, becoming Africa’s first semi-finalists. Nigeria is among the second seeds, and South Africa is positioned as third seeds for the draw in Abidjan.
The inclusion of surprise 2021 AFCON quarter-finalists Gambia as fourth seeds adds to the potential for a challenging “group of death,” a term used for particularly tough sections in football competitions.
Nigeria, a three-time winner of AFCON, and former champions South Africa might consider themselves unlucky not to be seeded higher. The Super Eagles are sixth in the continental rankings and, under normal circumstances, would have been top seeds. However, host countries, including Ivory Coast, automatically qualify and are among the first seeds.
To accommodate Ivory Coast as the ninth-ranked team, Nigeria had to share second-seed status with Cameroon, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
South Africa, having been ranked above DR Congo for some time, found themselves one place below in the seedings. This change occurred after a friendly match where South Africa defeated DR Congo.
The draw will unveil the intriguing dynamics of the upcoming tournament, shaping the path for these African football powerhouses.
