Africa: Draw for African Cup of Nations Sparks Soccer Fever

20 October 2007
allAfrica.com

The Confederation of African Football has announced in Accra the draw for the 2008 African Cup of Nations.

Sixteen teams have advanced through the qualifiers which have just ended and will compete in four groups. The top two teams in each group will advance through the group phase to the quarter-finals.

Host nation Ghana looks as if it will have clear sailing to the second round. Its team is joined by Morocco, Guinea, and Namibia in Group A of the tournament. Ghana will play in Accra for all its Group A games.

Defending champions Egypt head Group C. Cameroon, Africa's second highest-ranked team in the Fifa world rankings, Sudan and Zambia are the other teams  in the group.

Group D figures to be the "Group of Death." First-seed Tunisia is paired with traditional power Senegal, 2010 World Cup host South Africa and 2006 World Cup qualifier Angola.  All four probably expect to emerge from the group phase.

Four West African countries are in Group B. Nigeria, the top-ranked African team, is joined by Cote d'Ivoire, a 2006 World Cup qualifier known for its explosive offense. Mali and Benin will hope to play the role of spoilers in Group B.

Kick-off for the opening match is in Accra on January 20, when Ghana plays Guinea. The final will be on February 10 in Accra.

The full list of groups:

Group A

Ghana

Guinea

Namibia

Morocco

Group B

Nigeria

Cote d'Ivoire

Mali

Benin

Group C

Egypt

Cameroon

Sudan

Zambia

Group D

Tunisia

Senegal

South Africa

Angola

The full list of fixtures:

Group A

Jan 20

At Accra

Ghana vs Guinea

Jan 21

At Accra

Namibia vs Morocco

Jan 24

At Accra

Guinea vs Morocco

Ghana vs Namibia

Jan 28

At Accra

Ghana vs Morocco

At Sekondi

Guinea vs Namibia

Group B

Jan 21

At Sekondi

Nigeria vs Ivory Coast

Mali vs Benin

Jan 25

At Sekondi

Ivory Coast vs Benin

Nigeria vs Mali

Jan 29

At Sekondi

Nigeria vs Benin

At Accra

Ivory Coast vs Mali

Group C

Jan 22

At Kumasi

Egypt vs Cameroon

Sudan vs Zambia

Jan 26

At Kumasi

Cameroon vs Zambia

Egypt vs Sudan

Jan 30

At Kumasi

Egypt vs Zambia

At Tamale

Cameroon vs Sudan

Group D

Jan 23

At Tamale

Tunisia vs Senegal

South Africa vs Angola

Jan 27

At Tamale

Senegal vs Angola

Tunisia vs South Africa

Jan 31

At Tamale

Tunisia vs Angola

At Kumasi

Senegal vs South Africa

Quarter-finals

Feb 3

At Accra

(1) Group A winners vs Group B runners-up

At Sekondi

(2) Group B winners vs Group A runners-up

Feb 4

At Kumasi

(3) Group C winners vs Group D runners-up

At Tamale

(4) Group D winners vs Group C runners-up

Semi-finals

Feb 7

At Accra

Winner match 1 vs winner match 4

At Kumasi

Winner match 2 vs winner match 3

Third place playoff

Feb 9

At Kumasi

Losing semi-finalists

Final

Feb 10

At Accra

 
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