Algeria and Sudan will be meeting for the eighth time in international competition when they face off in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. Algeria has won three of the previous seven encounters, while Sudan has claimed two victories, with the remaining matches ending in draws.
Historical Encounters
1982 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers The two nations first clashed during the qualification campaign for the 1982 FIFA World Cup. Algeria secured a 2–0 win in the first leg and drew 1–1 in the return fixture, results that contributed to Algeria's historic qualification for their first World Cup appearance.
1996 African Cup of Nations Qualifiers A controversial match took place in 1995 during the qualifiers for the 1996 African Cup of Nations. Sudan initially won the game 2–0, but the result was later overturned on appeal due to Sudan fielding an ineligible player. The match was awarded as a 2–0 victory to Algeria, a decision that proved pivotal in Algeria's qualification for the tournament.
Recent Matches
2021 FIFA Arab Cup – December 1, 2021 Algeria delivered a commanding performance against Sudan in the group stage of the FIFA Arab Cup, winning 4–0 at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar. Baghdad Bounedjah opened the scoring in the 11th minute and added a second in the 37th. Djamel Benlamri extended the lead with a header in the 43rd minute, and Hilal Soudani capped the rout early in the second half.
2025 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifier – August 23, 2025 The most recent meeting occurred in a high-stakes qualifier held at Amman Stadium in Zanzibar City, Tanzania. The match ended 1–1 after regular time, with both teams scoring in the second half. Sudan ultimately triumphed 4–2 in the penalty shootout, eliminating Algeria from the qualification pathway and marking a significant upset.
Burkina Faso and Equatorial Guinea will meet for the fourth time in international competition during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. The fixture has historically been low-scoring, with only one goal scored across the three previous meetings. Burkina Faso holds the only win in the series, while the last two matches have ended in goalless draws. The 2015 AFCON draw contributed to Burkina Faso’s early exit from the tournament, a sharp contrast to their runner-up finish in the 2013 tournament. Equatorial Guinea, as hosts in 2015, advanced to the quarterfinals and eventually finished fourth, marking their best-ever performance at the tournament.
2011 Friendly – First Meeting
Burkina Faso won the inaugural encounter 1–0 in Ouagadougou. The only goal of the match—and the only goal ever scored between the two teams—was netted by a Burkinabè player (name unconfirmed in public records). The match served as a warm-up ahead of continental qualifiers.
2015 Africa Cup of Nations – Group Stage (21 January 2015)
The goalless draw was a pivotal result in Group A, as hosts Equatorial Guinea earned their second point of the tournament, keeping their hopes of advancing alive. For Burkina Faso, the result was a setback; the 2013 runners-up were eliminated after failing to win any of their group matches. The match was marked by missed chances from both sides and a strong defensive showing by the hosts.
2023 Friendly – Third Meeting
The two teams met again in a friendly in Malabo, which also ended in a 0–0 draw. The match was used by both sides to test new players ahead of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Algeria and Burkina Faso will meet for the 20th time when they face off in Morocco during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. This fixture marks the fourth encounter between the two nations in the AFCON tournament proper, with a history that spans competitive qualifiers and high-stakes tournament matches.
Africa Cup of Nations Meetings
1996 AFCON – Group Stage
Algeria defeated Burkina Faso 2–1 in a Group B finale held at the now-demolished EPRU Stadium in Port Elizabeth. Algeria took an early advantage with Khaled Lounici scoring in the 2nd minute, while Billel Dziri extended Algeria's lead in the 75th minute. Burkina Faso's Boureima Zongo scored in the 83rd minute, but it was not enough to alter the outcome for Burkina Faso, who had been eliminated from the tournament before the match and were playing in their first AFCON finals under the new moniker (their previous appearance at the 1984 edition came under the name Upper Volta).
1998 AFCON – Group Stage
Burkina Faso hosted the tournament, and it faced Algeria in the team's second group stage match at Stade du 4-Août in Ouagadougou. Kassoum Ouédraogo opened the scoring for the hosts with a penalty kick. Seydou Traoré extended their lead with a goal scored with his right foot. Moussa Saïb scored a consolation goal for Algeria, also from a penalty, but Burkina Faso held on to win their first every match at an AFCON tournament. The result proved crucial for the hosts, who would finish fourth at the tournament.
2023 AFCON – Group Stage
Algeria started at a high tempo in what proved to be a tightly contested match held in Bouake, Côte d'Ivoire, but Burkina Faso's resilient defense allowed the team to stay afloat. As Algeria was overwhelmingly committing to frontal assaults, their reckless defense resulted in Abdoul Tapsoba seizing the deal with a deep cross before Mohamed Konaté flung it into the net at the third minute of extra time. Originally, the goal was disallowed for an offside, but VAR reversed the decision and awarded the goal. With the restart of the game, Baghdad Bounedjah took advantage of a tricky free kick by Nabil Bentaleb in the 51st minute. However, an unnecessary foul by Rayan Aït-Nouri on Issa Kaboré resulted in a penalty, which Bertrand Traoré didn't miss, making it two for Burkina Faso at the 71st minute. The Stallions were awarded a penalty in the 70th minute after a VAR review, which led to Bertrand Traoré's goal. The referee had initially not called a foul, but VAR intervention confirmed the penalty was warranted. This decision, alongside the uncalled fouls against Algeria, heightened the controversy surrounding the officiating. However, Burkina Faso squandered their lead at the fifth minute of injury time when Bounedjah won the air combat to head to the net as the game ended in a manic 2–2 draw.
2014 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers – Playoff Round
First Leg – Ouagadougou (12 October 2013)
In the first leg of the 2014 FIFA World Cup playoff, Burkina Faso defeated Algeria 3-2 in Ouagadougou. After an early goal by Jonathan Pitroipa, Algeria twice equalized through Sofiane Feghouli and Carl Medjani, with the latter's goal coming after the ball bounced off Madjid Bougherra and into the net following a free-kick. The decisive and controversial goal was a penalty scored by Aristide Bance in the 86th minute, which secured a narrow advantage for Burkina Faso ahead of the return leg.
Second Leg – Blida (19 November 2013)
Algeria qualified for the 2014 FIFA World Cup after defeating Burkina Faso 1-0 in the second leg of their playoff, securing a 3-3 aggregate score and advancing on the away goals rule. The decisive goal came in the 49th minute when a free-kick was partially cleared, and the ball deflected off Algeria's Madjid Bougherra and into the net after being kicked by Burkina Faso defender Bakary Kone.
Following the second leg, Burkina Faso lodged a protest on the grounds that Bougherra should have been suspended for the second leg after accumulating two yellow cards in separate qualifying matches. The first alleged yellow card was during a group stage match against Mali. The second was supposedly issued during the first leg of the playoff against Burkina Faso. The FBF also formally complained to FIFA about the performance of the Senegalese referee, Badara Diatta. They claimed he did not play the full four minutes of injury time, and ended the match early.
Burkina Faso's attempt to declare Bougherra ineligible was a strategic move aimed at overturning the playoff result, as his goal was the deciding factor in Algeria's qualification. If FIFA had found Bougherra to be ineligible, the match could have been forfeited, potentially leading to Burkina Faso's qualification instead. The FBF was aware of past precedents in which teams had been sanctioned for fielding ineligible players.
On November 26, 2013, FIFA rejected Burkina Faso's appeal. FIFA stated that the FBF had failed to meet the formal conditions for lodging a protest, which require that complaints be filed within one hour of the match ending. FIFA also confirmed that its review of the match reports found no evidence that Bougherra had received a yellow card in the first leg of the playoff. The referee from the first match, Janny Sikazwe, also confirmed to the BBC that he had not booked Bougherra. Ultimately, FIFA ruled that Algeria had not committed any breach of regulations.
Bougherra would captain Algeria to the 2014 FIFA World Cup, for which the Desert Foxes advanced to the Round of 16.
Sudan and Equatorial Guinea are set to meet for the third time in international competition during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. The previous two encounters took place during the qualification cycle for the expanded 2019 tournament, which saw several fixtures rescheduled due to the shift to a 24-team format.
First Meeting – 8 September 2024 (AFCON 2025 Qualifier)
- **Venue:** Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea - **Result:** Equatorial Guinea 1–0 Sudan - **Goal:** Emilio Nsue (29')
Emilio Nsue scored the lone goal in a tightly contested match, marking his first goal against Sudan. The win gave Equatorial Guinea an early advantage in Group G.
Second Meeting – 22 March 2025 (AFCON 2025 Qualifier)
- **Venue:** Al-Merrikh Stadium, Omdurman, Sudan - **Result:** Equatorial Guinea 2–1 Sudan - **Goals:** - Sudan: Saif Eldin Terry (33') - Equatorial Guinea: Emilio Nsue (72'), Pablo Ganet (84')
With both nations already eliminated from qualification contention before kickoff, the match served as a formality. Emilio Nsue’s equalizer marked his third goal in the qualifying campaign and his 15th international goal overall. Saif Eldin Terry, who helped Sudan finish third at the 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN), opened the scoring and continued his strong form in continental play.
Algeria and Equatorial Guinea will meet for the fourth time when they face off in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. This marks their second encounter in the tournament proper, following previous meetings during qualification campaigns.
Algeria dominated the match with a fluid attacking display, securing a comfortable win to take control of Group E.
Second Leg – 14 November 2024
- **Venue:** Nuevo Estadio de Malabo, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea - **Result:** Equatorial Guinea 0–0 Algeria
A goalless draw ensured Algeria’s qualification for the 2025 AFCON. Equatorial Guinea also secured their spot in Morocco after finishing second in the group.
Sudan and Burkina Faso will meet for the second time in international competition during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. Their only previous encounter took place during the group stage of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.
Sudan secured a historic 2–1 victory over Burkina Faso in their final Group B match. Mudather El Tahir scored twice, giving Sudan their first win at the Africa Cup of Nations in 42 years—their last victory dating back to their championship-winning campaign in 1970. The win, combined with Angola's loss to the Ivory Coast, allowed Sudan to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since 1970.
Despite finishing bottom of the group with three losses, Burkina Faso's experience in the 2012 tournament proved formative. The lessons learned in squad development and tactical cohesion contributed to their remarkable run to the final of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, where they finished as runners-up to Nigeria.
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Algeria 
Burkina Faso 
Equatorial Guinea 
Sudan