By Etienne Mainimo Mengnjo
Cameroon and Cote d’Ivoire will reignite their longstanding football rivalry later this year as they prepare to face off in the group stage of the 2025 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), to be hosted in Morocco.
The draw, conducted on January 27, placed Cameroon in Group F alongside Mozambique, Cote d’Ivoire, and Gabon. The highly anticipated match between Cameroon and Cote d’Ivoire is scheduled for December 28 in Marrakech.
The football rivalry between these two nations spans several decades, with their first encounter occurring on February 6, 1970, in Khartoum, Sudan, during the Africa Cup of Nations. That match ended in a narrow 3-2 victory for Cameroon.
Since that inaugural clash, the two teams have met 16 more times, resulting in a competitive record: Cameroon has secured 9 wins, Cote d’Ivoire has 5 victories, and there have been 3 draws.
The most recent showdown took place during the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, where the reigning African champions, Cote d’Ivoire, emerged victorious with a 2-1 win at home on September 6, 2021, courtesy of two goals from Sébastien Haller. However, Cameroon retaliated in the return leg, winning 1-0 at the Japoma Stadium in Douala on November 16, ultimately advancing to the next stage on away goals.
Historically, Cote d’Ivoire has posed significant challenges for Cameroon in crucial AFCON encounters, having eliminated the Indomitable Lions in the quarter-finals of the 2006 tournament in Egypt and defeating them 1-0 in the third round of the group stages during the 2015 AFCON, effectively ending Cameroon’s campaign.
As both teams prepare for this upcoming clash, fans eagerly await what promises to be another thrilling chapter in this historic rivalry.
20
0
20
20
