Saturday, December 27
Group C
8:30 — Uganda vs Tanzania
11:00 — Nigeria vs Tunisia
Group D
3:30 — Benin vs Botswana
6:00 — Senegal vs DR Congo
Senegal and DR Congo will be eyeing a place in the knockout as the two sides meet at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations at Grand Stade de Tanger.
Senegal were in beast mode on matchday one, beating Botswana 3-0 thanks to a brace by Nicholas Jackson and a goal from Cherif Ndiaye.
But in DR Congo, a side that edged Benin thanks to Theo Bongonda’s strike, Senegal faces a stern test.
Once again, Coach Emerson Fae will rely on his star-studded squad that led by Sadio Mane and captain Kalidou Koulibaly.
Jackson has to be more clinical after the Chelsea forward, on loan at Bayern Munich, wasted chances in a game he could have scored more than his brace.
The same can be said of his opposite, Cedric Bakambu at DR Congo who had a goal disallowed due to offside in their win over Benin.
Jackson, after the opening match, said: “I am very happy to have started on this note by scoring two goals and hopefully it is the start of many goals to come.”
“Most importantly we won the match and played well. It is an important victory but now it is behind us and we will move our focus to the next game.”
Winner of the match will not only secure a second victory but book a ticket to the knockout stage.
Head to Head
This will be the third meeting between Senegal and DR Congo at the Africa Cup of Nations finals. Their first AFCON encounter came in 1968 in their final group match, when DR Congo won 2–1 to advance to the semi-finals alongside Ghana. DR Congo would go on to lift the AFCON title that year.
Their most recent AFCON meeting was in the quarter-finals of the 2002 edition, when Senegal won 2–0 thanks to goals from Salif Diao in the 30th minute and El Hadji Diouf in the 86th minute. Senegal went on to reach their first AFCON final in 2002, finishing runners-up to Cameroon.
Overall, this is the 11th meeting between the two nations. Senegal have won six matches, DR Congo two, with two draws. Senegal are unbeaten in their last eight meetings with DR Congo (W6 D2). DR Congo last defeated Senegal in a friendly international in 1969, a 4–0 victory.
The two sides most recently met in qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The first match, played in Senegal on 6 June 2024, ended in a 1–1 draw, with Ismaïla Sarr putting Senegal ahead in first-half stoppage time before Fiston Mayele equalised in the 85th minute.
Their second meeting in World Cup qualifying took place in Kinshasa on 9 September 2025 and ended in a 3–2 win for Senegal. Cédric Bakambu and Yoane Wissa had given DR Congo a 2–0 lead before goals from Pape Gueye (39’), Nicolas Jackson (53’) and Pape Matar Sarr (87’) completed the comeback. Senegal qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, while DR Congo are still seeking qualification via an intercontinental play-off.
