Senegal began their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations campaign in confident fashion with a commanding 3 to 0 victory over Botswana in their Group D opening match, marking the first AFCON finals meeting between the two nations.
The Teranga Lions set the tone early and were on the front foot from the opening minutes. Inside three minutes, Senegal threatened from a Botswana corner that turned into a rapid counterattack. Nicolas Jackson was denied in a one on one situation by goalkeeper Goitseone Phoko before Pape Gueye fired over the bar. Moments later, Jackson delivered a teasing cross that Sadio Mane met with a downward header, only for Phoko to claw the ball over the crossbar.
Botswana’s goalkeeper continued to keep his side in the contest during the first half. In the 15th minute, Phoko produced another fine save, diving low to his right to push Cherif Ndiaye’s driven effort around the post as Senegal’s pressure mounted.
The breakthrough finally arrived before the interval. A slick move down the left flank ended with Ismail Jakobs cutting the ball back into the area, where Nicolas Jackson arrived to finish emphatically with a first time left footed strike, rewarding Senegal for their dominance.
After the break, Senegal maintained control and doubled their advantage in the 58th minute. Jackson struck again to complete his brace, calmly finishing off another well worked team move that highlighted Senegal’s attacking cohesion.
Jackson had the chance to complete a hat trick in the 75th minute but fired over from close range after finding space inside the box. His miss did little to change the momentum of the game, as Senegal remained firmly in command.
Substitute Cherif Ndiaye added a third goal in the 90th minute to seal a comfortable win and underline Senegal’s superiority on the night.
The victory continues Senegal’s strong record in AFCON opening matches. The defending champions have now avoided defeat in 16 of their last 18 tournament openers and have scored in each of their last nine opening games at the finals.
Botswana, making only their second appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations, struggled to contain Senegal’s attacking quality. It was their fourth encounter against West African opposition at the finals, following their debut tournament in 2012 where all three of their group stage opponents came from the region.
Senegal will take confidence from this assured performance as they look to build momentum in Group D, while Botswana will aim to regroup quickly as they chase their first points of the tournament.
