Group A: Egypt, DR Congo, Uganda, Zimbabwe - AFCON 2019

June 11, 2019 By Ali M.

Topics: Africa Cup of Nations, Egypt, DR Congo, Uganda, Zimbabwe

Egypt, the host nation and most successful team in this competition, will face tough competition in their bid to secure progression and win the title.

What is the record of the teams at the AFCON?

Egypt

To state it simply, Egypt is one of the favorites to win the competition. While the Pharaohs are only the eighth highest-ranked African nation by FIFA, the host nation is the most successful team in Africa Cup of Nations history. They hold the record for most titles, having won this biennial tournament a whopping seven times -- next-in-line Cameroon trail them by two. Furthermore, Egypt is the only country to have won this prize three times in a row from 2006 to 2010, joining Argentina and Mexico as the only nations to win their continental cup on three consecutive editions.

DR Congo

DR Congo, ranked 46th in the world and fifth in Africa, is on the haunt for a third ACFON title. The Leapords have been crowned the kings of Africa twice before but it should be noted that their last success came back in 1974. Since then, they have won bronze on two different occasions, once in 1998 and then again in 2015, but crashed out of the quarter-finals in the last tournament.

Uganda

Uganda will be making back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations appearances for the first time since 1978. Their qualification for the 2017 edition ended their whopping 39-year absence from the competition but the Cranes crashed out in the group stage in Gabon two years ago. Never have they won this competition before, with their fourth-placed and second-placed finishes in 1962 and 1978 being their best ever campaigns.

Zimbabwe

The odds don't back Zimbabwe in Group A. This will be only their fourth appearance in this competition and they have failed to make it past the group stages in their three previous attempts. Of the nine AFCON games the Warriors have played, six ended in defeats and only two saw them emerge victorious. However, it should be noted that Zimbabwe beat Group A rival DR Congo to the number one spot in the qualifiers, which will be a confidence booster.

Who are the favorites to progress out of Group A?

Egypt, as the host nation and the most successful team in this competition's history, should make it to the knockout round. The question of who will follow them is a tricky one. Zimbabwe, despite their poor record in the Africa Cup of Nations, won their group in the qualifiers, as did Uganda. However, due to their experience, we expect DR Congo to secure progression.