Nigeria to be exempted as CAF Initiates preparations for 2025 AFCON
Nigeria will be exempted when the Confederation of African Football (CAF) takes the first step towards the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco.
After the successful conclusion of the 34th edition of the AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire, preparations for the next tournament are gearing up.
On its official website, CAF announced that the preliminary draw for the AFCON Morocco 2025 will occur on Tuesday, 20th February 2024, in Cairo, Egypt.
Scheduled for 1 pm Nigerian time, the draw is a crucial event in shaping the tournament’s structure.
The preliminary round will feature the eight lowest-ranked teams according to the FIFA ranking.
These teams include Somalia, Djibouti, Sao Tome, Chad, Mauritius, South Sudan, Liberia, and Eswatini. They will compete on a home-and-away basis within the FIFA international window of 18th to 26th March 2024.
The competition will be fierce as the four winning teams from the preliminary round will advance to join the 44 exempted teams for the group stage, intensifying the battle for qualification.
Nigeria, as one of the top-ranked teams, is among the favorites for the draw. Following the latest FIFA ranking, the Super Eagles have climbed to the third position in Africa and the 28th globally.
This significant rise is attributed to their impressive performance in the 2023 AFCON, where they reached the final, ultimately losing 2-1 to hosts Cote d’Ivoire.
The Super Eagles’ remarkable journey in the previous AFCON has strengthened their position on both the continental and global levels.
