AFCON SCAN Group F: Group of death that guarantees fireworks

The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations is fast approaching, and as is the norm, Mozzart Sport Kenya will bring you a preview of all the groups and introduce all the participating nations, focusing on their records, crucial assets, key players, and odds of achieving a notable result.

Every major tournament has its group of death. Simply, some giants have to face each other in the early stages of a competition, and this time, they'll do it in Group F.

The reigning champions, Ivory Coast, the five-time winners, Cameroon, and the potential dark horses, Gabon, are likely to divide the top three places among themselves, while the minnows, Mozambique, can hardly count on anything more than a decent participation.

AFCON SCAN Group A: Hosts and top contenders face eternal losers, ex-champs, and minnows

Still, no one is written off until the very end, and any team can hope to be one of two or three survivors in this group of death.

IVORY COAST

Area: 322,462 km2

Population: 31,500,000

Nickname: The Elephants

AFCON appearance: 26th

Best result: Champions (1992, 2015, 2023)

FIFA ranking: 42

Head coach: Emerse Fae (Ivory Coast)

Captain: Franck Kessie

When it comes to the Elephants, only two questions arise: Could they be any stronger? And can they become the fourth-ever team to win back-to-back AFCON titles?

The answer to the first question is easy: Hardly. It's even difficult to mention all the respectable players Emerse Fae included in his star-studded squad, though the names of the captain Franck Kessie, Wilfried Zaha, and Amad Diallo stand out.

AFCON SCAN Group D: Lions of Teranga, Leopards, and Cheetahs stalk poor Zebras

After all, almost half of the Ivory Coast's roster (13/28) plays in European top five leagues, while some prominent Premier League (Evann Guessand, Simon Adingra), La Liga (Nicolas Pepe), and Ligue 1 (Jeremie Boga) names have been left out.

Still, the Elephants' talent is immense. From the Serie A defensive duo of Odilon Kossounou (Atalanta) and Evan Ndicka (AS Roma), Nottingham Forest's experienced centre-back Willy Boly, and Wolverhampton's Emmanuel Agbadou, to the Trees' Ibrahim Sangare, ex-Borussia Dortmund striker Sebastian Haller, and RB Leipzig's newest prospect Yan Diomande - the reigning champs are mighty.

The 2023 trophy was clinched in unbelievable conditions, although the Ivorians were hosts. They lost two group stage games, were humiliated by Equatorial Guinea (4-0), and their head coach, Jean-Louis Gasset, was fired in the middle of the tournament.

However, that's when Fae emerged as a forced solution and in his maiden stint as a first-team manager, he did wonders.

Now, the Elephants aim for their fourth title and are justifiably confident. They've recently dominated their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying group - in which Gabon were their toughest rival - topping the table without a defeat.

AFCON SCAN Group B: Clash of two titans and fierce fight for third place

In the 2025 AFCON qualifiers, they were second behind Zambia and ahead of Sierra Leone and Chad, but the real thing is yet to come. That's the tournament itself, and the Ivory Coast know they have what it takes to win it again.

CAMEROON

Area: 475,442 km2

Population: 30,987,821

Nickname: The Indomitable Lions

AFCON appearance: 22nd

Best result: Champions (1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2017)

FIFA ranking: 57

Head coach: David Pagou (Cameroon)

Captain: Bryan Mbeumo

Does a team even stand a chance to do something big when their biggest legend and football federation president is at war with the (former) head coach? In any other case, no, but when it comes to the five-time AFCON champions, Cameroon, they are somewhat accustomed to it.

The failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup caused havoc with no end. The Indomitable Lions are used to coping with Samuel Eto'o's scandals, so this conundrum with the manager Marc Brys and his sack - though the Belgian claims the ex-Barcelona star has no authority to fire him - is just another day in the office.

Earthquake in Cameroon! Eto'o sacks coach 20 days before AFCON; Onana omitted from squad!

Although Brys doesn't accept that he's been sacked, the new gaffer, David Pagou, was the one to choose the 28-man squad for the AFCON. The squad in which there will be no two captains, Andre Onana and Vincent Aboubakar.

Whichever the reasons and whoever is right in this entire chaos around Eto'o, Brys, the players, and the Cameroonian Football Federation (FECAFOOT), in the end, the national team and the people who love it will pay the highest price.

Two Cameroon coaches for AFCON, two squads, and one victim – Andre Onana

Yet, despite the crisis and these unexpected dismissals, the Indomitable Lions have a high-quality roster, though the defence and midfield are somewhat mediocre. Hence, Pagou's crew's biggest strength will be the offence and the trio of the new skipper Bryan Mbeumo (Man United), Karl Etta Eyong (Levante), and Christian Kofane (Bayer Leverkusen).

In the end, whether the players can overlook the entire "madness" surrounding the team and cope with it is highly questionable. They are good enough to advance from the group stage, but in the knockout phase, every detail can prevail. Unfortunately for the Indomitable Lions, these details, such as a positive atmosphere, unity, and confidence, aren't on their side at the moment, and that may cost them dearly.

GABON

Area: 267,668 km2

Population: 2,397,368

Nickname: The Panthers

AFCON appearance: 9th

Best result: Quarter-finals (1996, 2012)

FIFA ranking: 78

Head coach: Thierry Mouyouma (Gabon)

Captain: Bruno Ecuele Manga

The 1990s and 2010s were a golden age of Gabonese football, and the upcoming continental tournament could reveal if the 2020s could become (football-wise) the most successful decade of this country on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.

After an excellent display in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in which they lacked only two points to leapfrog the Ivory Coast and qualify directly, and despite a defeat to Nigeria after extra time in the African playoffs semi-finals, the Panthers can be more than satisfied.

AFCON SCAN Group C: Two flights of Eagles and two of Kenya's neighbours

That satisfaction could provide them with a fertile ground for a successful AFCON campaign. Moreover, their primary challenge and goal will be improving on their best-ever result at the continental tournament, which is a quarter-final they reached twice (in 1996 and 2012).

Given their current form and the situation among the Cameroonians, the Panthers could easily capitalize on their rivals' struggles and seize the opportunity to secure one of the top two spots in Group F.

They reached the Morocco tournament easily, finishing second in their qualifying group behind the hosts and ahead of the minnows Lesotho and the Central African Republic.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang representing Gabon (©AFP)

Olympique Marseille star, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will once again lead Gabon at the Africa Cup of Nations, while the manager Thierry Mouyouma's primary assets will be the captain and all-time leading appearance-maker Bruno Ecuele Manga, ex-Premier League star Mario Lemina, and Los Angeles FC's ruthless striker and the third-leading scorer in the WC qualifiers, Denis Bouanga.

All in all, the Panthers' move to the knockout phase shouldn't be in question, while any further result will depend on various factors.

MOZAMBIQUE

Area: 801,590 km2

Population: 34,881,007

Nickname: The Mambas

AFCON appearance: 6th

Best result: Group stage (1986, 1996, 1998, 2010, 2023)

FIFA ranking: 102

Head coach: Chiquinho Conde (Mozambique)

Captain: Mexer

After an excellent 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign and joint-second place in Group G behind Algeria, Mozambique could have hoped for a decent Africa Cup of Nations in which they could finally advance from the group stage after five failures.

However, as ill-fortuned as they were, the Mambas were drawn into a group with the giants of African football, where their chances are very low. To put it this way, any point they win will be a fantastic bonus to the fact that they qualified for the tournament in Morocco.

AFCON SCAN Group E: Desert Foxes eye the top, as war for remaining knockout phase tickets starts

Speaking of the qualifiers, Mozambique were second with three points fewer than Mali, and ahead of Guinea-Bissau and Eswatini.

Most of Mambas' players represent domestic and Portuguese clubs, while their by far most popular player is Sunderland's Reinildo Mandava - their only member playing in the top five European leagues.

When it comes to attack, Sporting Lisbon's Geny Catamo is Mozambique's biggest hope, as the national team's sixth all-time leading scorer.

Still, the Mambas don't seem to stand a chance next to Ivory Coast, Cameroon, and Gabon.

MOZZART SPORT KENYA'S PREDICTION: Ivory Coast, Gabon, and Cameroon grab three tickets for the knockout phase (in this order), while Mozambique end the competition in the group stage.