Unprecedented Historical Event in the Semi-Finals of the Africa Cup of Nations 2025

SadaNews - The current edition of the Africa Cup of Nations 2025 held in Morocco has witnessed an unprecedented historical event regarding coaches from the African continent.

Currently, there are 4 African coaches at the helm of the teams that have reached the semi-finals, which is a first in the history of the tournament, according to the official website of the Confederation of African Football.

Moroccan Walid Rekraki is overseeing the technical management of his national team, as is Egyptian Hossam Hassan, who leads the Pharaohs.

Malian Eric Choupo-Moting is named as the coach of the Nigeria national team, and finally, Pape Thiêu leads his country’s national team, Senegal.

The CAF website indicated that this unprecedented event could ensure an African coach wins the tournament for the fourth consecutive time.

Coaches who won the last 3 editions of the Africa Cup of Nations:

Algerian Djamel Belmadi: Led the Algeria national team to win the title in 2019.

Senegalese Aliou Cisse: Led the Senegal national team to win the title in 2021.

Ivorian Jean-Louis Giuly: Led the Côte d'Ivoire national team to win the title in 2023.

A New Direction in African Football

CAF commented on this achievement, stating, "This achievement reflects a growing trend in African football, as local coaches are not only competing at the highest levels but are now shaping the future of the game on the continent."

It added, "Now Rekraki, Hossam Hassan, Thiêu and Choupo-Moting have the opportunity to continue this proud legacy and enhance the dominance of African coaches on the continental stage."

In general, 15 out of 24 teams participating in the Africa Cup of Nations 2025 are led by African coaches, with 11 of them qualifying to the knockout stage, reflecting "the cohesion, discipline, and unique understanding that local coaches bring to their teams on all levels: mentally, tactically, and culturally."

Statistics of the coaches of the teams that qualified for the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations 2025, according to data from "Transfer Market":

Walid Rekraki

He took over coaching Morocco in August 2022, about 4 months before the World Cup held in Qatar, and led the "Atlas Lions" to an unprecedented Arab and African achievement in World Cup history by finishing in fourth place.

Under him, Morocco exited the last edition of the Africa Cup of Nations in the round of 16 after losing to South Africa 0-2, and he now aims to make up for that failure by clinching the title in the current tournament.

In total, Rekraki has managed the Morocco national team in 47 official and friendly matches, winning 35, drawing 8, and losing only 4 matches.

Hossam Hassan

He took over on February 6, 2024, succeeding Portuguese coach Rui Vitória, and is now leading the Egyptian national team for the first time in a major tournament, but he successfully led the "Pharaohs" to the World Cup finals scheduled next summer in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

Since taking over the Egyptian national team, Hossam Hassan has led them in 24 matches, winning 16, drawing 6, and losing 2.

Hossam Hassan has a historic opportunity to enter the history books in a grand way; if he leads the Egyptian team to victory, he will be the third person to win the African Cup as a player and coach after the late Egyptian Mahmoud El-Gohary and Nigerian Stephen Keshi.

Pape Thiêu

He took over the coaching of the Senegal national team on December 13, 2024, and since then he has recorded impressive figures, leading the "Teranga Lions" to win 11 out of 15 matches during Thiêu's era, with only one loss and 3 draws.

Thiêu hopes to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor Aliou Cisse and lead the Senegal national team to win the Africa Cup of Nations title for the second time in their history in the continental championship.

Eric Choupo-Moting

He is the latest coach on this list, having been in charge of the "Super Eagles" since January 2025, and in a few days he will celebrate a year of coaching Nigeria, and winning the tournament may be the best gift players can offer their coach and country.

Choupo-Moting's journey with Nigeria faced a strong jolt after failing to qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup finals and subsequently losing the African playoff final against the Democratic Republic of Congo, thus winning the Africa Cup could be a great compensation for that.

He has coached the Nigeria national team in 20 matches, winning 13, losing 4, and drawing 3.

Source: Online websites