Angola face an anxious Tuesday at the Africa Cup of Nations finals as they wait to see whether they might yet sneak into the last 16 of the tournament in Morocco as one of the four best third-placed finishers in the group phase.
The Palancas Negas ended third place in Group B, behind Egypt and South Africa, collecting only two points after losing to Bafana Bafana and then drawing with Zimbabwe, who came last, and Egypt.
Since the introduction of a 24-team field for the Cup of Nations, there has never been a team with only two points after the first round that has managed to advance to the last 16.
But it will happen for Angola if both Tanzania and Uganda lose on Tuesday at the conclusion of Group C.
Tanzania are up against Tunisia in Rabat while Uganda take on Nigeria, who have already won the group, in Fes.
Defeat for Zambia in their last Group A match on Monday and a draw for the Comoros against Mali saw both eliminated from the contest.
Comoros finished third in the group, above Zambia on goal difference. But Comoros have an inferior goal difference to Angola, so they are heading home along with Zambia.
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In groups D, E and F there are three teams already with three points or more, so Angola’s only hope is failure for Tanzania and Uganda in Group C.
In Group D, which concluded on Tuesday, Senegal (4), DR Congo (4), and Benin (3) are all assured of progress, while in Group E, Algeria has already won the group after two games, but Burkina Faso (3) and Sudan (3) are also guaranteed progress.
In Group F, holders Ivory Coast and Cameroon progress with four points, and Mozambique will also be going through with their three-point haul.
With one game to play in Group D, Botswana is already eliminated, which is also the case for Equatorial Guinea in Group E and Gabon in Group F. They will all finish last.
In 2019, which was the first tournament with 24 teams, the four best third-placed finishers were Guinea (4), DR Congo, Benin, and South Africa with three each.
At the 2021 edition in Cameroon, Cape Verde and Malawi with four points and Tunisia and Comoros (3) were the four best third-placed finishers to advance to the last 16.
And at the last edition of the Cup of Nations in 2023, Guinea and Namibia went through with four points, followed by Mauritania and hosts Ivory Coast with three.
What a day it's been! Here are the results.#TotalEnergiesAFCON2025 pic.twitter.com/kou4ACcQGI
— TotalEnergies AFCON 2025 (@CAF_Online) December 30, 2025