Ivory Coast AFCON 2025 Preview
The Ivory Coast returns to AFCON 2025 aiming to defend their title amidst intense competition and high expectations. Having lifted the trophy in 1992, 2015, and 2023, they are known for their formidable record in the tournament. However, the journey won't be easy, with challenges like maintaining focus in demanding group tests and ensuring squad cohesion under manager Emerse Fae. As they face rivals like Cameroon and Gabon, their ability to avoid potential pitfalls will be crucial to progressing past the quarter-finals. The team's strength lies in its dynamic wide play and athletic midfield.
- Ivory Coast to defend AFCON title in 2025 amidst high expectations.
- Manager Emerse Fae aims for squad cohesion and balance.
- Key tests await in Group F against teams like Cameroon and Gabon.
Ivory Coast are the defending AFCON champions (Getty Images)
Ivory Coast return to AFCON 2025 as defending champions and with a target on their backs — along with a squad that is still learning how to win when everyone expects nothing less than victory.
Their last tournament ended in a storybook surge to the trophy, and that triumph has reset the conversation around The Elephants.
However, defending is often harder than chasing, and this could prove to be their Achilles Heel. The pressure on the squad this year will be different, and Group F offers immediate tests against contrasting opponents.
History at the Africa Cup of Nations
Ivory Coast have won AFCON three times (1992, 2015 and 2023) and have regularly fielded some of the continent’s most talented generations of players. In the last 10 AFCONS that have lifted the title twice, been runners-up twice, finished fourth once, been knocked out in the quarter–final three times and in the Round of 16 once.
The current squad is built on powerful wide play, midfield athleticism and an ability to ride tournament momentum when it arrives. Their AFCON pedigree is impeccable… but will the current squad gel to defend their title?
| Year | Host Country | Finish |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | Tunisia | Third place |
| 1968 | Ethiopia | Third place |
| 1970 | Sudan | Fourth place |
| 1974 | Egypt | Group stage |
| 1980 | Nigeria | Group stage |
| 1984 | Ivory Coast | Group stage |
| 1986 | Egypt | Third place |
| 1988 | Morocco | Group stage |
| 1990 | Algeria | Group stage |
| 1992 | Senegal | Champions |
| 1994 | Tunisia | Third place |
| 1996 | South Africa | Group stage |
| 1998 | Burkina Faso | Quarter-finals |
| 2000 | Ghana / Nigeria | Group stage |
| 2002 | Mali | Group stage |
| 2006 | Egypt | Runners-up |
| 2008 | Ghana | Fourth place |
| 2010 | Angola | Quarter-finals |
| 2012 | Gabon / Equatorial Guinea 2012 | Runners-up |
| 2013 | South Africa | Quarter-finals |
| 2015 | Equatorial Guinea | Champions |
| 2017 | Gabon | Group stage |
| 2019 | Egypt | Quarter-finals |
| 2021 | Cameroon | Round of 16 |
| 2023 | Ivory Coast | Champions |
The Road to Morocco: Goals, then grit
Ivory Coast qualified through Group G, finishing second behind Zambia but still collecting 12 points with a plus-9 goal difference.
They scored freely in patches, but the table also shows a reminder: one or two off days are enough to cede top spot in these qualifiers. Their 1-0 away loss to Sierra Leone followed a month later by a 1-0 away loss to Zambia is a prime example of this uncertainty.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zambia | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 13 |
| 2 | Ivory Coast | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 3 | 9 | 12 |
| 3 | Sierra Leone | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 | -5 | 5 |
| 4 | Chad | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 8 | -7 | 3 |
Managerial continuity - Emerse Fae and the weight of “repeat”
Emerse Fae’s rise from interim appointment to title-winning head coach was one of the defining stories of the last AFCON cycle. He also carries an impressive cache of 41 international caps for the Ivory Coast, including being a key member of their 2006 campaign which saw them lose in the final.
The challenge facing Fae is building a repeatable system: balancing experience with fresh energy, and ensuring the champions do not live off reputation alone.
Squad Analysis: Some controversial calls have been made
The Ivory Coast squad is made up of an impressive mix of explosive players who favour rapid ball progression into wide areas, aggressive overlaps and physical presence in both boxes.
The great risk for the side is slipping into complacency and losing control of the midfield, especially if opponents bait them into an open, transitional games.
A successful defence will likely depend on staying compact when chasing the play as well as avoiding the emotional swings that often hit champions in group clashes. Fae’s decision to omit Villarreal forward Nicolas Pepe and Sunderland winger Simon Adingra from the squad have drawn widespread criticism in the media, and it will be up to the manager and his squad to pull out the results to justify his calls.
| Pos | Player | DOB | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Yahia Fofana | 21 August 2000 (age 25) | 29 | 0 | Çaykur Rizespor |
| GK | Alban Lafont | 23 January 1999 (age 26) | 2 | 0 | Panathinaikos |
| GK | Mohamed Koné | 7 March 2002 (age 23) | 0 | 0 | Charleroi |
| DF | Ghislain Konan | 27 December 1995 (age 29) | 47 | 0 | Gil Vicente |
| DF | Odilon Kossounou | 4 January 2001 (age 24) | 30 | 0 | Atalanta |
| DF | Evan Ndicka | 20 August 1999 (age 26) | 23 | 0 | Roma |
| DF | Willy Boly | 3 February 1991 (age 34) | 22 | 1 | Nottingham Forest |
| DF | Jean-Philippe Gbamin | 25 September 1995 (age 30) | 22 | 0 | Metz |
| DF | Emmanuel Agbadou | 7 June 1997 (age 28) | 16 | 2 | Wolves |
| DF | Guéla Doué | 17 October 2002 (age 23) | 12 | 1 | Strasbourg |
| DF | Ousmane Diomande | 4 December 2003 (age 22) | 10 | 1 | Sporting SP |
| DF | Christopher Opéri | 29 April 1997 (age 28) | 10 | 0 | İstanbul Basaksehir |
| DF | Armel Zohouri | 5 April 2001 (age 24) | 4 | 0 | Iberia 1999 |
| MF | Franck Kessié | 19 December 1996 (age 28) | 96 | 15 | Al-Ahli |
| MF | Jean Michaël Seri | 19 July 1991 (age 34) | 62 | 4 | Maribor |
| MF | Ibrahim Sangaré | 2 December 1997 (age 28) | 52 | 12 | Nottingham Forest |
| MF | Wilfried Zaha | 10 November 1992 (age 33) | 33 | 5 | Charlotte |
| MF | Seko Fofana | 7 May 1995 (age 30) | 26 | 7 | Rennes |
| MF | Christ Inao Oulaï | 6 April 2006 (age 19) | 2 | 0 | Trabzonspor |
| FW | Sébastien Haller | 22 June 1994 (age 31) | 35 | 11 | Utrecht |
| FW | Jean-Philippe Krasso | 17 July 1997 (age 28) | 25 | 8 | Paris |
| FW | Oumar Diakité | 20 December 2003 (age 21) | 25 | 6 | Cercle Brugge |
| FW | Amad Diallo | 11 July 2002 (age 23) | 11 | 2 | Man United |
| FW | Vakoun Issouf Bayo | 10 January 1997 (age 28) | 9 | 3 | Udinese |
| FW | Yan Diomande | 14 November 2006 (age 19) | 4 | 2 | RB Leipzig |
| FW | Bazoumana Touré | 2 March 2006 (age 19) | 1 | 0 | Hoffenheim |
Prediction: How will they perform?
The Ivory Coast have been placed in Group F alongside defending champions Cameroon, Gabon and Mozambique.
Optimist View - Group winners, then a confident run into the semi-finals as the champions rediscover their tournament edge, but there’s not a lot of backing for them to make it into the final.
Realist View - A quarter-final exit could well be on the cards if the group stage becomes messy and the knockout draw brings a heavyweight early, and presuming that the squad fails to knit together into a unit with fighting spirit.
Prediction - Quarter-final
As the defending champs, the Ivory Coast should make it into the quarter-final without much of a sweat, but a lack of tactical chemistry will likely see them eliminated by a more settled unit like Senegal or Egypt when the really serious stuff happens in the last eight.
Fixtures - Mozambique first to encounter The Elephants
| Day/Date | Time (CET) | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday, 24 December | 19:30 | Ivory Coast vs Mozambique | Marrakesh Stadium |
| Sunday, 28 December | 22:00 | Ivory Coast vs Cameroon | Marrakesh Stadium |
| Wednesday, 31 December | 21:00 | Ivory Coast vs Gabon | Marrakesh Stadium |
Top Betting Sites
Betting offers
Upcoming Events
20 December 2025
- Kubota Spears vs Black Rams -
- Rugby Union
- Tokyo Sungoliath vs Toyota Verblitz -
- Rugby Union
- Sydney Thunder vs Sydney Sixers -
- Cricket
- English Premier League Matchday 17 -
- Soccer
- Stade Francais vs Racing 92 -
- Rugby Union
- Stormers vs Lions -
- Rugby Union
- Benetton vs Zebre -
- Rugby Union
- Saracens vs Exeter Chiefs -
- Rugby Union
- English Championship -
- Soccer
- Northampton vs Sale -
- Rugby Union
- Montauban vs Pau -
- Rugby Union
- La Rochelle vs Bayonne -
- Rugby Union
- Harlequins vs Bristol -
- Rugby Union
- Lyon vs Toulouse -
- Rugby Union
21 December 2025
- Honda vs Kobe Steel -
- Rugby Union
- Wild Knights vs Urayasu D-Rocks -
- Rugby Union
- Melbourne Renegades vs Hobart Hurricanes -
- Cricket
- Kenilworth racecourse -
- Horse Racing
- La Liga -
- Soccer
- 2025/26 Africa Cup of Nations Odds -
- Soccer
- Newcastle vs Bath -
- Rugby Union
- Bordeaux vs Toulon -
- Rugby Union
22 December 2025
- South Africa v Angola -
- Soccer
- Egypt v Zimbabwe -
- Soccer
Load More
