The African Cup of Nations is drawing to a close, and unsurprisingly, there are still a few options for AFCON winner predictions for 2025. Many of them stem from the excitement, having a mix of favourites and underdogs, but do the stats back them? Not really.
So our aim is to show you predictions based on the analysis we conducted. You’ll get to see it from an expert point of view; read on and see for yourself.
Who Will Win the AFCON 2025?
Usually, predicting the eventual winner is difficult in huge tournaments like this, but we have evaluated the teams based on their form, squad, coaching team, and their head-to-head records. As such, we’ve come up with our AFCON 2025 winner prediction, and right at the top of the list are the hosts, Morocco.
Not only do they have home advantage, but they’ve also been performing extremely well over the last 24 months. The Atlas Lions were the only African team at the 2022 World Cup to reach the last four, solidifying their status as one of the best nations on the continent.
Furthermore, they boast a team filled with exciting players who can influence the outcome of a game at any time. African Player of the Year Achraf Hakimi leads the team, and the PSG man was ranked sixth in the recent Ballon d’Or awards.
Still, they are the favourites heading into the last four of the competition, even though they will play against Nigeria, which features one of the most dangerous attacks at this year’s AFCON.
If the hosts fail to defeat the Super Eagles in the semi-finals, the following countries should be favourites to win AFCON in descending order:
- Senegal
- Nigeria
- Egypt
Based on our metrics, these countries are up to standard and are likely to perform well in the competition. Their top performers are briefly detailed in this table.
| Team | Star Player | Key Strength |
|---|---|---|
| Morocco | Brahim Diaz | Scored a goal in each AFCON game. Has close control, quick feet, and the ability to beat defenders |
| Senegal | Idrissa Gana Gueye | Shields the defence, helping them register three clean sheets so far at AFCON |
| Nigeria | Alex Iwobi | Has been the engine for the Super Eagles, with vision, composure, and tactical intelligence |
| Egypt | Mohammed Salah | Has been Mr Consistency for Egypt, delivering four goals and an assist already, all good things come from him |
Which Teams Have Been Most Successful at the AFCON?
We cannot undermine the place of history when making AFCON winner predictions. Therefore, our research also went into looking into each team and their individual records in the tournament.
Some nations have successfully built a record of dominance in the tournament. While they may not win, it is almost certain that they’ll make it into the knockout stages.
This table perfectly summarises our findings:
| Country | Titles Won | Final Appearances | Notable Years Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Egypt | 7 | 10 | 1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2010 |
| Cameroon | 5 | 7 | 1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2017 |
| Ghana | 4 | 9 | 1963, 1965, 1978, 1982 |
| Nigeria | 3 | 7 | 1980, 1994, 2013 |
Egypt have been the most successful so far, and they had an unreal run between 2006 and 2010, winning it three times consecutively.
Meanwhile, Cameroon, Ghana, and Nigeria have won the tournaments a few times while also consistently appearing in the finals. They’ve shown consistency over the years, making them part of the most successful nations in the tournament's history.
Who are the AFCON 2025 Underdogs?
While the tournament has reached the final four stage, there’s no real underdog, as each of these nations require two wins. However, Egypt are the least likely to progress to the final of the remaining teams, let alone win their eighth title.
The table below shows the reasoning behind this picks:
| Team | Group Stage Performance | Key Strength |
|---|---|---|
| Egypt | Shaky performances, but they got the job done. Quarter-finals was risky with a 3-2 win over the Ivory Coast, but they just got over the line. | Tournament pedigree with historical success. An incredible attacking partnership between Omar Marmoush and Mohamed Salah. |
FAQs
Here are some of the most asked questions concerning the AFCON winner predictions: