Tanzania Aim to End 46-Year Wait Against Nigeria at AFCON 2025
Tanzania’s Taifa Stars will face Nigeria’s Super Eagles on Tuesday in their opening Group C fixture of the 35th Africa Cup of Nations, rekindling a rivalry that stretches back 46 years.
The clash at the Fès Stadium in Morocco marks only the second time the two nations will meet in an AFCON group-stage encounter.
Their last meeting at this level was on March 8, 1980, at the National Stadium in Surulere, Lagos, where Nigeria ran out 3–1 winners courtesy of goals from Mudashiru Lawal, Ifeanyi Onyedika, and Segun Odegbami.
That defeat remains a painful memory in Tanzanian football history, symbolizing unfinished business for the Taifa Stars.
Since then, the two sides have not crossed paths in the AFCON finals, though they have met in qualifiers for both the World Cup and AFCON.
Nigeria holds a commanding record, unbeaten in seven matches against Tanzania, with four wins and three draws. Tanzania are yet to record a victory over the African heavyweights.
The Taifa Stars, making their fourth AFCON appearance, return with renewed ambition. They first qualified in 1980, reappeared in Egypt 2019, and have now reached successive finals for the first time.
Despite playing ten AFCON matches without a win, they showed resilience in 2023 by avoiding defeat in two consecutive games, including a 0–0 draw with DR Congo, their only clean sheet at the finals. Simon Msuva and Feisal Salum, joint top scorers in qualifying, will be key figures as Tanzania seek to break their winless streak.
Nigeria, meanwhile, boast a rich AFCON pedigree, having won three titles and played 104 matches in the competition’s history. Their dominance over Tanzania includes the 1980 group-stage victory in Lagos, which set the Super Eagles on course to their first continental crown.
More recently, the teams met during the 2017 AFCON qualifiers, drawing 0–0 in Dar es Salaam before Nigeria edged a 1–0 win in Uyo.
Adding intrigue to Tuesday’s encounter, Nigeria goalkeeper Amas Obasogie currently plays his club football in Tanzania for Singida Black Stars, alongside Hussein Masalinga and Khalid Iddi.
The stage is set in Fès for a contest steeped in history, pride, and ambition, as Tanzania aim to end a 46-year wait for victory against Nigeria and rewrite their AFCON story.
