2023 AFCON group draw to be held today in Abidjan

The group draw of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) will be held later today in Abidjan by the Confederations of Africa Football (CAF).

24 countries have qualified for the 34^th edition of Africa’s prestigious tournament that is slated to be hosted in Ivory Coast.

The final draw will start at 19h00 local time/GMT (21h00 CAT, 22h00 Cairo) at the breathtaking, brand-new Parc Des Expositions venue and be beamed live on CAF TV (YouTube).

Meanwhile, multiple hip-hop award winner, AKON, will host the final draw.

The Confederations of African Football (CAF) has confirmed that four points will be used for the official draw.

Pot 1 will contain the hosts Cote d’Ivoire together with the highest ranked nations: Morocco, who were semi-finalists at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar 2022; current African Champions Senegal, 2004 champions Tunisia, 2019 champions Algeria and record-time champions Egypt.

Pot 2 is the next 6 highest ranked sides comprising Nigeria’s Super Eagles, who last lifted the trophy in 2013 in South Africa, five-time champions Cameroon, Mali, 2021-semi-finalists Burkina Faso, Ghana and Congo DR.

In Pot 3, Cape Verde, who keep on improving, will be grouped with 2012 champions Zambia, 1996 champions South Africa, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea and Mauritania.

Pot 4 will contain the lowest-ranked teams in the competition. Angola, hosts in 2010, will be together with Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Namibia, The Gambia and Tanzania.

In a group of six named A to F, all 24 teams will be split with each group consisting of four countries, one each from the various pots at the final draw.

The 2023 AFCON tournament will take place between January 13 and February 11, 2024.