2025 AFCON Group B Match Preview: Angola vs Zimbabwe

The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations continues on Friday, December 26, 2025, as Angola face Zimbabwe in a Group B fixture at the Stade de Marrakech, Morocco.

Following opening-day defeats, the Black Sables and the Warriors are under early pressure in a group featuring tournament favourites Egypt and South Africa, knowing that a positive result is crucial as the group begins to take shape after the first round of matches.

Angola head into their second Group B match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations looking to recover from a difficult start after being edged out 2–1 by South Africa in their opening fixture, where Show cancelled out the opener before Lyle Foster struck in the 79th minute to secure victory for Bafana Bafana.

Black Sables have now failed to win nine of their 10 opening matches at the AFCON, recording six draws and three defeats, with their only opening-game victory coming in 2012 when they beat Burkina Faso 2–1.

On the two previous occasions Angola lost their opening AFCON match, in 1996 and 2006, they went on to draw their second fixture, and they have never progressed to the knockout stage after losing their first game.

Angola have won their second group match on three occasions after failing to triumph in the opener, doing so in 2008 against Senegal following a draw with South Africa, in 2010 against Malawi after drawing with Mali, and in 2023 against Mauritania after a draw with Tanzania.

Across nine previous second group matches at the continental championship, Angola have recorded three wins, four draws and two defeats, with both losses coming against South Africa in 1996 and 2013, while their form heading into the tournament showed a mixed return of three wins, two draws and one defeat in their last six competitive matches across all competitions, with the only loss coming in an international friendly against world champions Argentina.

Patrice Beaumelle’s side have scored at least three goals in each of their last three victories against Mauritius, Zambia and Mozambique, while also recording draws in World Cup qualifiers against Cameroon and Eswatini, scoring 12 goals and conceding eight in total.

In head-to-head meetings, the COSAFA rivals have faced each other 19 times, with Angola and Zimbabwe recording eight wins apiece alongside three draws, with their first encounter coming in a 3–2 Zimbabwe victory in a friendly on 10 November 1985.

Zimbabwe conceded two second-half goals in their opening fixture against Egypt to suffer defeat, with strikes from Manchester City’s Omar Marmoush and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah marking their third consecutive opening-game loss and fifth overall at the tournament.

Historically, Marian Marinica’s side have been regular AFCON qualifiers in recent editions, but progression beyond the group stage has remained elusive, having lost their second group match four times in five previous appearances in 2004, 2006, 2017 and 2021, with their only exception a draw in 2019.

The Warriors have never won either of their first two matches at the AFCON, with all three of their tournament victories coming in their final group game, while their loss to Egypt was their 11th defeat in 16 matches overall.

Zimbabwe’s last five AFCON matches have all produced a winner, yielding one victory and four defeats, and they are yet to record a goalless draw or keep a clean sheet at the finals.

This fixture represents their second meeting with fellow Southern African opposition at AFCON, following a 2–1 defeat to Malawi in their second group match in 2021, although they have scored in each of their last three tournament games, their longest scoring run in AFCON history.

Angola possible starting lineup:

Marques; Mata, Gaspar, Buatu, T. Carneiro; Show, Luvumbo, Fredy; Maestro, Dala, Nzola

Zimbabwe possible starting lineup:

Arubi; Murwira, Takwara, Hadebe, Lunga; Nakamba, Musonda, Fabisch; Dube, Msendami, Navaya

 

 

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