Overview
- Senegal opened Group D with a 3-0 win over Botswana in Tanger, led by a Nicolas Jackson brace before Cherif Ndiaye sealed the scoreline.
- Tunisia beat Uganda 3-1 in Rabat, with Elias Achouri scoring twice after Ellyes Skhiri’s early header put the Carthage Eagles in front.
- DR Congo edged Benin 1-0 through Théo Bongonda, with the match marred by a VAR outage during a potential Benin penalty for a Chancel Mbemba handball.
- Algeria began against Sudan with Riyad Mahrez scoring inside roughly 80 seconds, as Vladimir Petkovic started Luca Zidane in goal.
- Burkina Faso rallied past Equatorial Guinea 2-1 with stoppage-time goals from Georgi Minoungou and Edmond Tapsoba after falling behind late.