Senegal drawn in AFCON ‘Group of Death’ - Groups of AFCON 2023

The 2023 African Cup of Nations gets underway in Ivory Coast and will be held from 13 January to 11 February (2024) with Senegal set to face Guinea, Cameroon and Gambia.

Abidjan hosted the draw for the group stage of the 2023 AFCON and after the draw it was Group C that started to generate headlines with Senegal (current champions from the 2021 competition) drawn with Cameroon, Guinea and Gambia. Speaking after the draw, Sadio Mané, Senegal’s star striker claimed: “It’s a difficult group, plus I’m half Gambian and half Guinean,” explained the Al Nassr forward.

Music star Akon was co-presenter at the draw as John Obi Mikel, Achraf, Drogba and Mané selected the teams that will compete in Ivory Coast. Morocco, another of the favorites, were handed a favorable draw and Group B will be a battle between Egypt and Ghana, two of the strongest teams on the continent.

Twenty-four teams will participate in Ivory Coast from 13 January to 11 February with many high profile European club players (Salah, Iñaki Williams, Osimhen...) set to miss action for their club sides with their absence inevitably set to provoke debate over the scheduling of AFCON.

GROUP A: Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria

GROUP B: Mozambique, Cape Verde, Ghana and Egypt

GROUP C: Gambia, Guinea, Cameroon and Senegal

GROUP D: Angola, Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Algeria

GROUP E: Tunisia, Mali, South Africa, Namibia

GROUP F: Tanzania, Zambia, Democratic Rep. Congo and Morocco