South Africa coach Hugo Broos has declared Egypt the favourites to lead Group B in the upcoming 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), following the tournament’s draw held on Monday.
Set to launch in December in Morocco, South Africa’s group also includes Zimbabwe and Angola, presenting a formidable challenge.
Broos acknowledged Egypt’s strength despite their disappointing performance in the last AFCON, where they exited earlier than anticipated.
“Egypt are favourites to win the group,” he told SAFA media.
“They didn’t make a very good last AFCON. They didn’t perform like everybody expected. They were very soon out of the tournament.
“But I think in the last year, year and a half, they began to build a very good team. They did very well in the qualifiers. So that will be the team to beat for the first place.”
The upcoming match against Zimbabwe marks the fourth recent encounter between the two nations, with Broos expressing confidence in his team’s historical edge, having secured three wins and one draw against their rivals. He remarked, “Winning against Zimbabwe is very possible in AFCON.”
On Angola, Broos admitted to a lack of familiarity, emphasising the need for thorough analysis and preparation for this match.
“It will be very important to do a good analysis of Angola and then to be well prepared to play that game,” he concluded.
