The Africa Cup of Nations has certainly lived up to its billing by providing plenty of shocks and drama.
Senegal were bidding to become the first repeat winners in more than decade, with the Lions of Teranga defending their title in the Ivory Coast this winter, but they crashed out to the hosts, who sacked their manager after a poor group-stage performance, in the round of 16.
Egypt’s messy campaign also came to an early conclusion in the last 16 after losing Mohamed Salah to injury before a penalty shootout defeat to DR Congo, while 2022 World Cup semi-finalists Morocco also fell at the same stage. Algeria, who lifted the trophy in 2019, failed to make it past the groups after finishing bottom of Group D which contained minnows Angola, Burkina Faso and Mauritania. Ghana also flopped after failing to win any of their group games.
Incredibly, Ivory Coast overcame a dreary set of results in the group stage and a change of manager to reach the final where they will face Nigeria, who have been the most consistent team in the tournament.
A string of Premier League stars were called up for this year’s AFCON including Salah, Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana, Tottenham midfield duo Pape Sarr and Yves Bissouma, West Ham’s new hero Mohammed Kudus and Fulham pair Alex Iwobi and Calvin Bassey.
The latest AFCON odds are on the Paddy Power website and Paddy Power app, otherwise, everything you need to know about the tournament is below.
AFCON 2024 dates
The Africa Cup of Nations in 2024 takes place from Saturday, January 13 to Sunday, February 11.
AFCON 2024 groups
The top two in each group and the four best third-placed teams progress to the round of 16.
Group A: Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau
Group B: Egypt, Ghana, Cape Verde, Mozambique
Group C: Senegal, Cameroon, Guinea, Gambia
Group D: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Angola
Group E: Tunisia, Mali, South Africa, Namibia
Group F: Morocco, DR Congo, Zambia, Tanzania
AFCON 2024 venues
Alassane Ouattara Stadium – Abidjan (60,000)
Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium – Abidjan (33,000)
Charles Konan Banny Stadium – Yamoussoukro (20,000)
Stade de la Paix – Bouake (40,000)
Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium – Korhogo (20,000)
Laurent Pokou Stadium – San Pedro (20,000)
AFCON 2024 fixtures and schedule
THIRD PLACE PLAY-OFF
February 10
South Africa v DR Congo (8pm)
FINAL
February 11
Nigeria v Ivory Coast (8pm)
AFCON 2024 results
GROUP STAGE
January 13
Ivory Coast 2-0 Guinea-Bissau
January 14
Nigeria 1-1 Equatorial Guinea
Egypt 2-2 Mozambique
Ghana 1-2 Cape Verde
January 15
Senegal 3-0 Gambia
Cameroon 1-1 Guinea
Algeria 1-1 Angola
January 16
Burkina Faso 1-0 Mauritania
Tunisia 0-1 Namibia
Mali 2-0 South Africa
January 17
Morocco 3-0 Tanzania
DR Congo 1-1 Zambia
January 18
Equatorial Guinea 4-2 Guinea-Bissau
Ivory Coast 0-1 Nigeria
Egypt 2-2 Ghana
January 19
Cape Verde 3-0 Mozambique
Senegal 3-1 Cameroon
Guinea 1-0 Gambia
January 20
Algeria 2-2 Burkina Faso
Mauritania 2-3 Angola
Tunisia 1-1 Mali
January 21
Morocco 1-1 DR Congo
Zambia 1-1 Tanzania
South Africa 4-0 Namibia
January 22
Equatorial Guinea 4-0 Ivory Coast
Guinea-Bissau 0-1 Nigeria
Cape Verde 2-2 Egypt
Mozambique 2-2 Ghana
January 23
Gambia 2-3 Cameroon
Guinea 0-2 Senegal
Angola 2-0 Burkina Faso
Mauritania 1-0 Algeria
January 24
Namibia 0-0 Mali
South Africa 0-0 Tunisia
Tanzania 0-0 DR Congo
Zambia 0-1 Morocco
ROUND OF 16
January 27
R1: Angola 3-0 Namibia
R2: Nigeria 2-0 Cameroon
January 28
R3: Equatorial Guinea 0-1 Guinea
R4: Egypt 1-1 DR Congo (7-8 on pens)
January 29
R5: Cape Verde 1-0 Mauritania
R6: Senegal 1-1 Ivory Coast (4-5 on pens)
January 30
R7: Mali 2-1 Burkina Faso
R8: Morocco 0-2 South Africa
QUARTER-FINALS
February 2
QF1: Nigeria 1-0 Angola
QF2: DR Congo 3-1 Guinea
February 3
QF3: Mali 1-2 Ivory Coast
QF4: Cape Verde 0-0 South Africa (1-2 on pens)
SEMI-FINALS
February 7
SF1: Nigeria 1-1 South Africa (4-2 on pens)
SF2: Ivory Coast 1-0 DR Congo
Read More on AFCON 2024
- Score the latest football betting tips at Paddy Power News
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- AFCON tips: 13/2 Golden Boot shout tops our tournament betting preview