Egypt and Morocco secured their spots as the first two African nations to represent the continent at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics following their respective performances in the TotalEnergies CAF U-23 Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco 2023.
In the semi-finals, Egypt, the defending champions, clinched a place in the finals with a stunning goal from Mohamed Mahmoud in the 8th minute. Their victory meant that Guinea narrowly missed out on a spot in the final but still have a chance to claim third place, which comes with an automatic ticket to Paris as the third African representative.
Egypt enters the finals with an impressive record of not conceding a single goal throughout both the group stage and semi-finals, instilling confidence as they face the hosts.
Following suit, tournament hosts Morocco secured their place in the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics after a hard-fought 4-3 penalty shootout victory over Mali, following a thrilling 2-2 draw in regular time. Their triumph solidified them as the second African nation to secure a place in Paris.
Both Egypt and Morocco now have the opportunity to lift the TotalEnergies CAF U23 AFCON title and travel to Paris as African champions, adding to their achievement of qualifying for the Summer Olympics.
With a focus on reclaiming a top-three finish for Africa at the global showpiece, Egypt and Morocco aim to follow in the footsteps of notable performances by African nations such as Ghana’s third-place finish in 1992, followed by Nigeria’s consecutive gold medals in 1996 and Cameroon’s success in 2000.
Meanwhile, Guinea and Mali will face off in the third-place playoff, which will determine the additional African representative at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.
The losing team in the playoff still has a chance to secure a place at the competition, as the fourth-placed side will have to win a playoff match against a country from Asia at a later date determined by competition organizers.
The game will be played on Saturday.
