AFCON Fantasy kicks off on 21st December, and fixture planning will play a major role in early success.
This article uses the in-house expert @FPLReaction’s Fixture Ticker to assess Gameweeks 1–3, highlighting when managers should invest in teams based on schedule strength.
With only the Group Stage in focus, identifying sides with strong early runs could provide a crucial edge from the outset.
- READ MORE: How to play AFCON Fantasy 2025
THE BASICS
Before taking a look at the Fixture Tickers, it could be worth knowing the teams involved, their three-letter abbreviations (used in the tickers), their FIFA World Ranking, and their CAF Ranking, all of which you can see in the table below.
| Team | Abbreviation | FIFA World Ranking | CAF Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria | ALG | 35 | 3 |
| Angola | ANG | 89 | 18 |
| Benin | BEN | 92 | 20 |
| Botswana | BOT | 138 | 40 |
| Burkina Faso | BFA | 62 | 12 |
| Cameroon | CMR | 57 | 10 |
| Comoros | COM | 108 | 26 |
| Congo | CGO | 56 | 9 |
| Egypt | EGY | 34 | 4 |
| Equatorial Guinea | EQG | 97 | 21 |
| Gabon | GAB | 78 | 15 |
| Ivory Coast | CIV | 42 | 7 |
| Mali | MLI | 54 | 8 |
| Morocco | MOR | 11 | 1 |
| Mozambique | MOZ | 102 | 22 |
| Nigeria | NGA | 38 | 5 |
| Senegal | SEN | 19 | 2 |
| South Africa | RSA | 61 | 11 |
| Sudan | SDN | 118 | 31 |
| Tanzania | TAN | 112 | 27 |
| Tunisia | TUN | 40 | 6 |
| Uganda | UGA | 85 | 17 |
| Zambia | ZAM | 90 | 19 |
| Zimbabwe | ZIM | 129 | 36 |
GAMEWEEKS 1-3
Below you can see all participants and their Group Stage fixtures.
The teams at the top of the ticker have the easiest fixtures, in contrast to the teams at the bottom with the toughest fixtures.
WHO HAS THE BEST FIXTURES?
As we can see seven sides follow a similar pattern at the top. Congo, Egypt, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal and Tunisia all have two green (easy fixtures) and one red (tough) fixture.
What is interesting is that all seven sides face their most difficult fixture in Gameweek 2. This highlights a significant fixture swing.
We also can’t rule out sides with middling fixtures. Among them are Algeria, Angola, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and South Africa.
GAMEWEEK 1
For those who want to focus on Gameweek 1, then check out this ticker.
GAMEWEEK 2
Gameweek 2 appears to be the trickiest round to navigate. With lots of heavyweight clashes this week, the following ticker could help understand how to manage it.
GAMEWEEK 3
After a tricky Gameweek 2, here are the fixtures for the final round of the Group Stage.
