* The two nations share a 545-kilometre border, with Côte d’Ivoire lying to the south of Burkina Faso
* This will be the third meeting between the teams at the AfCON, having previously met in back-to-back group stage encounters in 2010 and 2012
* As Algeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo meet in the AfCON finals for the first time in 26 years
Maravi Express
The final Round of 16 fixture at the Africa Cup of Nations (AfCON) Morocco 2025 will see West African neighbours Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso face off at the Grand Stade Marrakech tonight from 21h00 GMT — a West African derby as the two nations share a 545km border, with Côte d’Ivoire lying to the south of Burkina Faso.
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The border runs west from a tripoint with Mali to another tripoint with Ghana in the east, underlining the close geographical and regional ties between the sides — and this will be the third meeting between the teams at the AfCON, having previously met in back-to-back group stage encounters in 2010 and 2012.
Those meetings both came in the group phase, making this their first-ever AFCON knockout round clash. In the 2010 finals, they were drawn in a three-team Group B alongside Ghana and met in their opening game in Lubango on 11 January, which ended goalless.
Côte d’Ivoire progressed from the group along with Ghana. Current Côte d’Ivoire coach Emerse Faé was an unused substitute in that match.
They met again in Group B at the 2012 edition, where Côte d’Ivoire secured a 2-0 victory with goals from Salomon Kalou in the 16th minute and a Bakary Koné own goal in the 82nd minute.
The Ivorians progressed from the group alongside Sudan. Côte d’Ivoire have kept a clean sheet in both previous AfCON meetings against Burkina Faso and overall, the two nations have met 20 times in all competitions — with Côte d’Ivoire recording eight wins, Burkina Faso three, with nine matches ending in draws.
They were drawn together in qualifying for the 1996 AfCON, with both matches ending in draws as both nations qualified for the finals in South Africa. They also met in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying, where Côte d’Ivoire won both matches, 3-2 away and 5-0 at home.
The sides have twice been paired in African Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifying, with Côte d’Ivoire progressing in 2022 and Burkina Faso qualifying ahead of the Ivorians in 2024.
In the other Round of 16 from 18h00, Algeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo meet at the AfCON finals for the first time in 26 years and the third meeting this evening.
Their first encounter came at the 1998 finals, when Algeria claimed a 1-0 group stage victory in which Abdelkader Ferhaoui scored the only goal in the 36th minute.
They also met at the 2000 edition, opening Group B with a 0-0 draw in Kumasi. On both previous occasions they have met at AfCON, Algeria progressed from the group stages at the expense of DR Congo.
Algeria have also kept a clean sheet in both AFCON meetings between the sides. In 2000, Algeria advanced as group runners-up behind South Africa, while DR Congo were eliminated after finishing third in the group ahead of Gabon.
In 1988, Algeria finished as Group A runners-up behind hosts Morocco. Overall, the teams have met seven times — Algeria recording three wins, while DR Congo are winless, with four matches ending in draws.
The last four meetings have all finished level, with the most recent three — all friendlies — ending 1-1. The last Algeria victory in this fixture came at the 1988 AFCON.
Their most recent meeting was a friendly international played in Blida in October 2019 in which Algeria took the lead in the 6th minute through Islam Slimani before Cédric Bakambu equalised for DR Congo in the 26th minute.—Reporting by CAFonline; edited by Maravi Express
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