Morocco will face Comoros on Sunday at 20h in the opening game of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Morocco 2025, running from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026, marking the start of the tournament.
This is going to be Comoros’ second clash at the continental finals, after their first meeting in AFCON 2021, played in January 2022 in Cameroon, when Morocco won 2‑0.
Considered one of Africa’s smallest footballing nations, Comoros, with a population of over 850,000, topped Group A in the AFCON 2025 qualifiers with 12 points, finishing ahead of Tunisia, Gambia, and Madagascar, and went through without losing a match.
At their first AFCON finals, they lost their opening match 1–0 to Gabon but reached the Round of 16 after a 3–2 win over Ghana.
Comoros is currently ranked 108th in the FIFA men’s rankings, and making it to AFCON is a huge achievement for a team with such a young footballing history.
They have not kept a clean sheet at AFCON so far, conceding seven goals, and three of their four goals coming in the second half.
Key players in qualifying included Warmed Omari and Saïd Bakari, who played every minute of the qualifying campaign.
Comoros didn’t win their first competitive international match until 2016, beating Botswana 1‑0 in an AFCON qualifier. The team tried to reach AFCON for the first time in 2010 but lost to Madagascar in the preliminary round.
For decades, Comoros had no official football team. They became a CAF member only in 2003 and joined FIFA in 2005.
Their football fortunes improved after appointing Amir Abdou as head coach in 2014. Born in Marseille to Comorian parents, Abdou focused on building a collective spirit among mostly overseas-based players.
Reports indicate that about 300,000 Comorans live in France, and the national team is almost entirely made up of players who grew up abroad.
Comoros is currently coached by Stefano Cusin, an Italian‑Canadian who took charge in October 2023 and led them through qualification for AFCON 2025.
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