The Round of 16 at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco delivered drama, dominance, and defining moments as Africa\u2019s finest nations booked their places in the quarter-finals, setting up a mouth-watering last-eight stage.<\/p>\n
Defending champions C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire underlined their credentials with an emphatic 3\u20130 victory over Burkina Faso in Marrakech. Amad Diallo continued his impressive form, scoring once and providing an assist as the Ivorians eased through with authority. Their reward is a blockbuster quarter-final clash against Egypt, seven-time champions, in Agadir, a repeat of the iconic 2006 final.<\/p>\n
Egypt secured their place after a hard-fought 3\u20131 extra-time win over Benin, with Yasser Ibrahim\u2019s towering header and a Mohamed Salah breakaway goal proving decisive in a tense encounter.<\/p>\n
Algeria also needed late drama to advance, edging past the Democratic Republic of Congo 1\u20130 thanks to a 119th-minute strike from substitute Adil Boulbina in Rabat. The victory sets up a heavyweight quarter-final showdown with Nigeria, who cruised through the round of 16 with a commanding 4\u20130 win over Mozambique, barely breaking sweat.<\/p>\n
Hosts Morocco delighted home fans as a solitary strike from Brahim D\u00edaz secured a narrow 1\u20130 victory over Tanzania, sending the Atlas Lions into the quarter-finals. D\u00edaz etched his name into AFCON history by becoming the first Moroccan player to score in four consecutive tournament matches. Morocco will now face Cameroon, who overcame South Africa 2\u20131 to keep their title hopes alive.<\/p>\n
In an all-West African battle, Senegal fought back from behind to defeat Sudan 3\u20131, while Mali, reduced to ten men, showed remarkable resilience to edge Tunisia 3\u20132 on penalties after a 1\u20131 draw. The results set up an enticing Senegal-Mali quarter-final clash, promising intensity and regional pride.<\/p>\n
With the Round of 16 concluded, the quarter-finals now bring together continental giants and fierce rivals, as the race for the AFCON 2025 crown intensifies across Morocco.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Round of 16 at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco delivered drama, dominance, and defining moments as Africa\u2019s finest nations booked their places in the quarter-finals, setting up a mouth-watering last-eight stage. Defending champions C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire underlined their credentials with an emphatic 3\u20130 victory over Burkina Faso in Marrakech. Amad Diallo continued<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":45108,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17026],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-45107","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-afcon-2025"},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/FB_IMG_1767739838866.jpg?fit=2048%2C1152&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8jzHl-bJx","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":21723,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/watch-afcon-2019-benin-stun-morocco-to-reach-quarter-finals-goals-and-highlights\/","url_meta":{"origin":45107,"position":0},"title":"WATCH: AFCON 2019: Benin stun Morocco to reach quarter-finals | Goals and Highlights","author":"Clinton Eleto","date":"July 5, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"WATCH: AFCON 2019: Benin stun Morocco to reach quarter-finals | Goals and Highlights Having collected three points only from as many games in the group stage, Benin accomplished one of their best achievement in their footballing history after advancing to the Round of 16 at the Total Africa Cup of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AFCON 2019"","block_context":{"text":"AFCON 2019","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/afcon-2019\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"WATCH: AFCON 2019: Benin stun Morocco to reach quarter-finals | Goals and Highlights","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/D-u7KnwX4AUXFwj.jpg?fit=1200%2C831&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/D-u7KnwX4AUXFwj.jpg?fit=1200%2C831&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/D-u7KnwX4AUXFwj.jpg?fit=1200%2C831&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/D-u7KnwX4AUXFwj.jpg?fit=1200%2C831&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/D-u7KnwX4AUXFwj.jpg?fit=1200%2C831&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":43792,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/afcon-u20-south-africa-crowned-champions-after-beating-morocco\/","url_meta":{"origin":45107,"position":1},"title":"AFCON U20 : South Africa crowned champions after beating Morocco","author":"Raphael Bannerman-Quartey","date":"May 18, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Amajitas of South Africa crowned a fine display of performance with a win over Morocco in the finals of the TotalEnergies CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations at Cairo International Stadium. \u00a0 Both teams raced to the finals on the back of impressive wins over Nigeria and Egypt, respectively,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AFCON U20"","block_context":{"text":"AFCON U20","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/afcon-u20\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/South-Africa.jpg?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/South-Africa.jpg?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/South-Africa.jpg?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/South-Africa.jpg?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":43757,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/afcon-u-20-ghana-take-on-egypt\/","url_meta":{"origin":45107,"position":2},"title":"AFCON U-20 : Ghana take on Egypt","author":"Raphael Bannerman-Quartey","date":"May 10, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Ghana\u2019s Black Satellites will go head-to-head with\u00a0 Egypt in one of four quarter-final pairings in the ongoing AFCON\u00a0 U-20 tournament. \u00a0 The West African nation topped their group with 7 seven points after beating defending champions Senegal, Central African Republic and managing a draw in their group opener against Congo\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AFCON U20"","block_context":{"text":"AFCON U20","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/afcon-u20\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Ghana-vs-CAR-2.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1138&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Ghana-vs-CAR-2.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1138&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Ghana-vs-CAR-2.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1138&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Ghana-vs-CAR-2.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1138&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Ghana-vs-CAR-2.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1138&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":21081,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/afcon-2019-see-full-afcon-fixtures\/","url_meta":{"origin":45107,"position":3},"title":"AFCON 2019: See Full AFCON Fixtures","author":"Clinton Eleto","date":"June 21, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"AFCON 2019: See Full AFCON Fixtures Egypt opened the competition with a win against Zimbabwe on Friday evening as the host nation start on a high note thanks to Trezeguet's effort. Here are the remaining fixtures of the competition: Fixture schedule and results Group stages: June 21-July 2 June 21:\u00a0Egypt\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AFCON 2019"","block_context":{"text":"AFCON 2019","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/afcon-2019\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"AFCON 2019: See Full AFCON Fixtures","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/D9no8HnWsAI4_wE.jpg?fit=1200%2C645&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/D9no8HnWsAI4_wE.jpg?fit=1200%2C645&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/D9no8HnWsAI4_wE.jpg?fit=1200%2C645&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/D9no8HnWsAI4_wE.jpg?fit=1200%2C645&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/D9no8HnWsAI4_wE.jpg?fit=1200%2C645&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":21924,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/afcon-2019-var-used-quarter-finals-starting-today\/","url_meta":{"origin":45107,"position":4},"title":"AFCON 2019: VAR to be used from quarter-finals starting today","author":"Clinton Eleto","date":"July 10, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"AFCON 2019: VAR to be used from quarter-finals starting today The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system will be introduced from the quarter-final stage of the Africa Cup of Nations. It was originally planned to use VAR from the semi-final stage but it will now be brought in from the last-eight\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AFCON 2019"","block_context":{"text":"AFCON 2019","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/afcon-2019\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"AFCON 2019: VAR to be used from quarter-finals starting today","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/VAR.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/VAR.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/VAR.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/VAR.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/VAR.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":37023,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/ghana-to-face-morocco-in-u23-afcon-see-full-draw\/","url_meta":{"origin":45107,"position":5},"title":"Ghana to face Morocco in U23 AFCON; See full draw","author":"Clinton Eleto","date":"May 5, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Ghana have been handed a tough passage to the semi-finals of the U23 Africa Cup of Nations\u00a0 2023 after being drawn with host nation Morocco. In the final tournament\u2019s opener of the TotalEnergies U23 Africa Cup of Nations, host Morocco will face Ghana on Saturday 24 June 2023 at the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "African Football"","block_context":{"text":"African Football","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/african-football\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/nvytma2sbary6e0pf7vf.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/nvytma2sbary6e0pf7vf.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/nvytma2sbary6e0pf7vf.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/nvytma2sbary6e0pf7vf.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/nvytma2sbary6e0pf7vf.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45107"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45109,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45107\/revisions\/45109"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}