A Woman’s View of AFCON 2025 and the Chaos We Love
Nothing unites Africans like AFCON, and AFCON 2025 was doing just that until it wasn’t. AFCON doesn’t sneak in; it announces itself with a bang, way before the first whistle of the tournament goes off.
The African Cup of Nations, AFCON, is a biennial tournament for the senior men’s football teams of African countries. It is usually a display of talent, grit, and black excellence. The spotlight shines on 24 African teams for almost 4 weeks, and the whole world pays attention.
I planned to shut out the noise and support my national team from the sideline, and this is because I have a love-hate relationship with the Nigerian Super Eagles. If you ever followed their progress prior to the wonderful performance at the just-concluded AFCON 2025, you would understand where I am coming from.
Let’s Face it
Truly, there is a corresponding tournament for women, the WAFCON, but watching AFCON as a woman is a layered experience. You are aware that the space was not designed with you in mind, but somehow, you still belong.
From Nigeria and Senegal to Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, and others, each team arrived carrying a legacy of football excellence etched into its crest. They were expected to win not just matches but bragging rights for male fans whose loyalty is loud and unapologetic. As women, we often watch with a quieter intensity, aware of how quickly celebration turns into blame and how players become overnight heroes or villains, depending on the outcome of a game.
AFCON 2025: The Dream
AFCON is not just a football tournament. It is a soulful carnival, a cultural conference where the entire continent meets for dramatic therapy laced with heated banter. The action doesn’t start on the football pitch. It begins with the teams arriving in colorful, cultural regalia; the opening ceremony; the studio analysis before the games; and the dynamic energy no other tournament in the world can match.
The Nigerian Super Eagles‘ winning streak caught my attention this year, and I was surprised to see more women joining the conversation online. From a woman’s perspective, every other team is the same, and the only team that deserves to win is their national team. The cultural spectacle, every goal scored, every match won, and the players are where most women connect. We usually stay out of tactical formations and football politics, until the bias at AFCON 2025 became impossible to ignore.
Before addressing the elephant in the room, let’s quickly touch on the fun part.
AFCON 2025: The Healthy Banters
African football banter is ruthless. It starts even before the tournament and continues way after the cup has been lifted. Neighbors remind each other of past eliminations. Nigeria banters with Ghana, and the latter slams them with a comeback without hesitation.
The funniest part of the AFCON 2025 banter is how a country drops out of the race and supports their neighbors. The whole of Africa literally supported Senegal against Morocco.
For women, it is both entertaining and exhausting. The jokes fly freely, but so do the dismissive comments about who “really understands football” and who is “just watching for vibes.”
AFCON 2025: The Script
I have never been so furious at football as I was during this recent tournament. Officiating remains one of AFCON’s most sensitive topics. Yes, not every loss is a conspiracy. Sometimes the better team really wins. Giving every team that faces the host country, Morocco, a fair chance surely wasn’t on the agenda for AFCON 2025.
As a woman, you’ll learn that authority is rarely questioned in football. The referee and VAR favoritism towards the host country or big teams is final. You can have post-match debates about who is deserving or who cheated, but it changes nothing, and that was infuriating. I found the audacity to cheat insulting, despite CAF being guided by global football standards.
The Future of African Football
African football has a long way to go. Beyond the pitch, AFCON is about visibility. It’s an avenue for smaller nations to matter, for unknown players to be seen under the circumstance that they are given a level playing field to shine.
AFCON 2025 was emotional, imperfect, loud, and beautiful. It tested our patience but most importantly, welcomed women into the space. And soon, African football will improve, and African countries will be united on and off the pitch.
Maybe AFCON isn’t scripted after all. Maybe all it needs is better officiating standards, transparency, respect for players and fans
