Africa Cup qualifiers: Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea advance without kicking a ball
Ivory Coast's Max Gradel lifts the trophy as he celebrates with teammates after winning the Africa Cup of Nations in final between Nigeria v Ivory Coast at Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara, Abidjan, Ivory Coast on February 11, 2024. File photo REUTERS
Ivory Coast and Equatorial Guinea have qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations finals without needing to play, as the qualifiers continued on Wednesday.
Defending champions Ivory Coast secured a top-two finish in Group G after Sierra Leone drew 1-1 with Chad in Abidjan. Ivory Coast lead the group with nine points, followed by Zambia with seven, while Sierra Leone, with one game left, cannot surpass them.
Chad, already eliminated, played their home match in Ivory Coast due to the poor condition of their stadiums. Chad initially led with Abu-Diaby Dumbuya’s impressive goal but equalised five minutes later through Mahamat Thiam’s Panenka-style penalty.
In Group E, Liberia’s 1-0 win over Togo confirmed Equatorial Guinea’s qualification. Equatorial Guinea, who reached the last tournament’s latter stages, hold seven points from four games, while Liberia (four points) and Togo (two points) are eliminated.
Although Liberia could match Equatorial Guinea’s points, they cannot progress due to an inferior head-to-head record, having lost both matches against them. Liberia’s win, secured by Mohammed Sangare’s 83rd-minute penalty, was the team’s first group-stage victory and the debut win for caretaker coach Thomas Kojo.
Cameroon also drew 0-0 against Namibia in Group J in Johannesburg. Cameroon, already qualified, held their ground despite Namibia’s near-goal from Prins Tjiueza, who struck the post twice in quick succession. This point was Namibia’s first in the campaign, having already been eliminated.
Cameroon coach Marc Brys criticised the travel arrangements, as the team arrived less than 24 hours before the match without two key players, Bryan Mbeumo and Carlos Baleba.
Other teams qualifying for the tournament include Angola, Burkina Faso, DR Congo, Egypt, Morocco, and Senegal.
Further spots are expected to be confirmed on Thursday as nine more qualifiers take place, with teams like Nigeria, Sudan, and Tunisia aiming for spots in the finals in Morocco from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026.