The Africa Cup of Nations 2023 was actually held in early 2024, but it was as eagerly anticipated as ever with the top footballing nations from the continent all heading to the Ivory Coast.
The host nation were expected to compete with AFCON heavyweights such as Senegal, Egypt and Ghana, while Morocco were full of hope after a strong showing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Of course, the Black Stars' campaign came to an early end when they were knocked out at the group stage, while Ivory Coast only just scraped through to the Round of 16.
After a month's engrossing action, Ivory Coast were celebrating on home soil after defeating Nigeria 2-1 in the final in Abidjan to become African champions for the third time.
The Sporting News has you covered when it comes to the tournament schedule, bracket and group standings, with results and fixtures updated below after every single game day.
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AFCON 2023 format and rules
There were 24 teams competing in this iteration of the Africa Cup of Nations, initially split into six groups of four.
With the knockout stages starting with a Round of 16 — and being one-off straight knockout ties — that means that, as well as the top two from each group, four of the best third-placed teams in the groups also got a knockout spot.
In the event that two teams were locked on the same points, their placing was determined on:
- Points in the head-to-head match between the two tied teams
- Goal difference in the group
- Goals scored overall in the group
- Drawing of lots.
In the knockout stages, games went to 30 minutes of extra time and then penalties if the teams could not be separated. There was also be a third-place playoff between the two losing semifinalists to determine who got the bronze medal.
AFCON fixtures, results, schedule and group tables
The qualification process for the tournament, which is known as AFCON 2023 but is taking place in 2024, was finalised by mid-September 2023. Host nation Ivory Coast were automatically placed in Group A, with the final qualifiers being Namibia.
Here's how the groups ended up being drawn, with results and standings updated regularly:
Group A table
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| Equatorial Guinea (Q) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | +6 | 7 |
| Nigeria (Q) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | +2 | 7 |
| Ivory Coast (q) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -3 | 3 |
| Guinea-Bissau | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -5 | 0 |
Results/fixtures
- Jan 13: Ivory Coast 2-0 Guinea-Bissau
- Jan 14: Nigeria 1-1 Equatorial Guinea
- Jan 18: Equatorial Guinea 4-2 Guinea-Bissau
- Jan 18: Ivory Coast 0-1 Nigeria
- Jan 22: Equatorial Guinea 4-0 Ivory Coast
- Jan 22: Guinea-Bissau 0-1 Nigeria
Group B
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| Cape Verde (Q) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | +4 | 7 |
| Egypt (Q) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Ghana | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -1 | 2 |
| Mozambique | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -3 | 2 |
Results/fixtures
- Jan 14: Egypt 2-2 Mozambique
- Jan 14: Ghana 1-2 Cape Verde
- Jan 18: Egypt 2-2 Ghana
- Jan 19: Cape Verde 3-0 Mozambique
- Jan 22: Cape Verde 2-2 Egypt
- Jan 22: Mozambique 2-2 Ghana
Group C
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| Senegal (Q) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +7 | 9 |
| Cameroon (Q) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 4 |
| Guinea (q) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 4 |
| Gambia | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -5 | 0 |
Results/fixtures
- Jan 15: Senegal 3-0 Gambia
- Jan 15: Cameroon 1-1 Guinea
- Jan 19: Senegal 3-1 Cameroon
- Jan 19: Guinea 1-0 Gambia
- Jan 23: Gambia 2-3 Cameroon
- Jan 23: Guinea 0-2 Senegal
Group D
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| Angola (Q) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | +3 | 7 |
| Burkina Faso (Q) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 4 |
| Mauritania (q) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -1 | 3 |
| Algeria | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -1 | 2 |
Results/fixtures
- Jan 15: Algeria 1-1 Angola
- Jan 16: Burkina Faso 1-0 Mauritania
- Jan 20: Algeria 2-2 Burkina Faso
- Jan 20: Mauritania 2-3 Angola
- Jan 23: Angola 2-0 Burkina Faso
- Jan 23: Mauritania 1-0. Algeria
Group E
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| Mali (Q) | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| South Africa (Q) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Namibia (q) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | -3 | 4 |
| Tunisia | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -1 | 2 |
Results/fixtures
- Jan 16: Tunisia 0-1 Namibia
- Jan 16: Mali 2-0 South Africa
- Jan 20: Tunisia 1-1 Mali
- Jan 21: South Africa 4-0 Namibia
- Jan 24: Namibia 0-0 Mali
- Jan 24: South Africa 0-0 Tunisia
Group F
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| Morocco (Q) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | +4 | 7 |
| DR Congo (Q) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Zambia | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -1 | 2 |
| Tanzania | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -3 | 2 |
Results/fixtures
- Jan 17: Morocco 3-0 Tanzania
- Jan 17: DR Congo 1-1 Zambia
- Jan 21: Zambia 1-1 Tanzania
- Jan 21: Morocco 1-1 DR Congo
- Jan 24: Tanzania 0-0 DR Congo
- Jan 24: Zambia 0-1 Morocco
MORE: Who will win AFCON? Predictions and betting odds for tournament
AFCON knockout stage schedule and fixtures
Round of 16 fixtures
| Date | Time (ET) | Match result |
| January 27 | 12 p.m. | Angola 3-0 Namibia |
| January 27 | 3 p.m. | Nigeria 2-0 Cameroon |
| January 28 | 12 p.m. | Equatorial Guinea 0-1 Guinea |
| January 28 | 3 p.m. | Egypt 1-1 (7-8 p) DR Congo |
| January 29 | 12 p.m. | Cape Verde 1-0 Mauritania |
| January 29 | 3 p.m. | Senegal 1-1 (4-5 p) Ivory Coast |
| January 30 | 12 p.m. | Mali 2-1 Burkina Faso |
| January 30 | 3 p.m. | Morocco 0-2 South Africa |
Quarterfinals
| Date | Time (ET) | Match |
| February 2 | 12 p.m. | Nigeria 1-0 Angola |
| February 2 | 3 p.m. | Guinea 1-3 DR Congo |
| February 3 | 12 p.m. | Mali 1-2 Ivory Coast (aet) |
| February 3 | 3 p.m. | Cape Verde 0-0 (1-2 P) South Africa |
Semifinals
| Date | Time (ET) | Match |
| February 7 | 12 p.m. | Nigeria 1-1 (4-2 P) South Africa |
| February 7 | 3 p.m. | Ivory Coast 1-0 DR Congo |
Third-place playoff
| Date | Time (ET) | Match |
| February 10 | 3 p.m. | South Africa 0-0 (6-5 P) DR Congo |
Final
| Date | Time (ET) | Match |
| February 11 | 3 p.m. | Nigeria 1-2 Ivory Coast |