The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially released the full schedule, including kick-off times and venues, for the group stage and knockout rounds of the 2025 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations.
The 17th edition of the biennial tournament will run from 27 April to 18 May 2025, featuring 13 national teams battling for continental glory across three host cities: Cairo, Ismailia, and Suez in Egypt.
The tournament will open on Sunday, 27 April, with Sierra Leone taking on South Africa in Ismailia. On the same day, the host nation, Egypt, will clash with Zambia at the Cairo International Stadium.
Seven-time champions, Nigeria, will kick off their campaign against Tunisia on Thursday, 1 May, at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo.
Defending champions, Senegal, begin their title defence on 2 May, facing the Central African Republic in Suez at 6:00 p.m., followed by a clash between DR Congo and Ghana at 9:00 p.m. at the same venue.
The competition will adopt a three-group format:
- Group A will have five teams,
- Groups B and C will each feature four teams.
The top two teams from each group, along with the two best third-placed teams, will advance to the quarter-finals. Importantly, the four semi-finalists will automatically qualify to represent Africa at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Chile 2025, scheduled from 27 September to 19 October.
