Egypt, Senegal, Uganda and DR Congo seal African Nations Cup finals places

DR Congo, Egypt, Uganda and Senegal secured their spots at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco after important wins in their qualifying matches on Tuesday.

DR Congo continued their perfect run in Group H with a commanding 2-0 win over Tanzania at the Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium that helped them seal their place at the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON in Morocco.

After a goalless first half, Meschack Elia broke the deadlock in the 87th minute with a composed finish following Nathanaël Mbuku’s assist.

Elia doubled the lead in the 93rd minute, securing all three points for the Leopards, who now sit at the top of the group with 12 points, having won all four of their matches.

The victory means the Leopards have secured their place at the tournament in Morocco as they are guaranteed one of the two slots from the group.

Tanzania remains second with four points but faces a tough challenge to qualify with Guinea hit Ethiopia 3-0. trailing closely behind.

Meanwhile, Ibrahim Adel netted an extraordinary long-range goal from inside his own half to secure Egypt a 1-0 away victory over Mauritania in the qualifiers.

The Pyramids FC winger spotted goalkeeper Mamadou Diop off his line and unleashed a 55-yard shot that sailed over Diop and into the net in the 85th minute.

The result secures the Pharaohs’ record-extending 27th AFCON appearance, as they sit comfortably atop Group C with 12 points, ahead of Botswana (6 points), Cape Verde, and Mauritania (3 points each).

Coach Hossam Hassan reshuffled his squad, opting for a 3-4-3 formation and making four changes to his starting lineup due to the absence of several key players.

The seven-time African champions will conclude their AFCON qualifying campaign in November with matches against Cape Verde in Praia and Botswana in Cairo on the 11th and 19th, respectively.

In another game, Senegal left it late to secure a 1-0 victory over Malawi, courtesy of a stoppage-time free-kick from Sadio Mane that helped them to grab a ticket to the tournament to be played in Morocco.

The game looked set to end in a stalemate until Mane’s 96th-minute strike gave the Teranga Lions all three points, moving them level with Burkina Faso at the top of Group L, both on 10 points.

The result of the match means both Senegal and Burkina Faso cannot be overtaken by their group opponents.

Malawi remains winless in the group and sits bottom with no points after four matches.

Uganda edged South Sudan 2-1 in Group K, with an own goal from Alfred Leku proving decisive.

Denis Omedi gave the Cranes an early lead in the 15th minute, only for Yohanna Juma to equalize for South Sudan in the 21st minute with a stunning strike.

Uganda capitalized on a defensive mix-up in the 66th minute, with Leku’s own goal giving the Cranes their third win of the campaign.

Uganda now tops the group with 10 points, while South Sudan remains bottom with 0 points from four games.

2025 AFCON QUALIFIERS UPDATE:
Full-time

Rwanda 2-1 Benin Republic

S. Leone 1-0 Cote D’Ivoire

Congo B 1-1 South Africa

G. Bissau 0-0 Mali

Niger Rep 0-1 Angola

Botswana 1-0 Cape Verde

Mauritania 0-1 Egypt

Sudan 2-0 Ghana

Chad 0-1 Zambia

S. Sudan 1-2 Uganda

Malawi 0-1 Senegal

Lesotho 0-2 Gabon

Tanzania 0-2 DR Congo