As the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Egypt 2025, gets underway in Cairo later tonight, debutants Sierra Leone will tackle Zambia in their opening Group A game.
The 2017 champions Zambia are facing a tournament debutant for only the second time after South Africa in the 1997 group stages, a game they lost 2-1.
Aside from their 2017 win, they have ended fourth in 1991, 1999 and 2007. Zambia exited the tournament winless in their last appearance in 2023 (D1 L2).
Zambia failed to win their opening game at their last appearance in 2023, drawing 1-1 against Benin.
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In 2017 they defeated Guinea first up on their way to the title, while prior to that in 2015 and 2007 they lost to Mali 1-0 and Nigeria 4-2.
Sierra Leone are one of two debutants at the current finals and will become the 43rd team to feature at the finals.
The West African country is the 14th WAFU member nation, only two other members, Cabo Verde and Guinea Bissau, have not qualified for the finals.
Sierra Leone came through the WAFU A qualifying tournament, which was hosted in September 2024 in Liberia as runners-up in the final to Senegal.
In the qualifiers they drew 0-0 against Guinea then defeated Liberia 3-1 and Guinea Bissau 1-0 in the group stages, before a 3-0 win over Gambia in the semi-finals. They lost to Senegal in the final.
Since 1991, when the tournament took on its current guise, this will be Zambia’s 21st meeting with a West African nation.
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Zambia record reads P20 W4 D6 L10.
Three of Zambia’s four wins against WAFU member nations came on home soil in the 2017 finals when they defeated Guinea 1-0 and Mali 6-1 in the group stages, and then defeated Senegal 2-0 in the final.
Zambia’s only other win since 1991 against a west African team was a 6-2 group stage success against Guinea in 1999.
Their biggest win against a WAFU member nation was a 6-1 thrashing of Mali in the 2017 group stages.
