The Home Advantage in Africa Cup of Nations Opening Matches

The national teams of Morocco and Comoros are preparing to kick off the 35th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations football tournament, as they meet tomorrow, Sunday, in the opening match of the continental competition.

All previous 34 opening matches of the Africa Cup of Nations finals, except for the 1970 and 1992 editions, featured the host nation, with history favoring teams playing on their home grounds.

As Morocco prepares to face Comoros in the opening match of the Africa Cup of Nations, an Arab showdown, the Atlas Lions draw confidence from a long-standing tradition where host teams have dominated the opening matches of Africa's premier tournament.

Since the Africa Cup of Nations began in 1957, host nations have won 20 of their opening matches, while only five hosts have been defeated, and nine matches ended in draws.

The only exceptions to this rule were in 1970, when Cameroon and Ivory Coast opened the tournament in Sudan, according to the official website of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and in 1992, when Cameroon and Morocco opened the edition hosted by Senegal.

The very first opening match of the Africa Cup of Nations was a disappointment for the hosts, as Sudan lost 1-2 to Egypt in Khartoum 68 years ago, when only three teams participated.

It took nearly three decades before a host nation suffered another opening match defeat.

The shock came in Cairo in 1986, when Senegal defeated Egypt 1-0. Despite this setback, the Pharaohs regained their balance strongly and went on to win the tournament that year, beating Cameroon on penalties in the final.

Senegal, as hosts, faced a similar fate in 1992, losing 1-2 to Nigeria in their opening match in Dakar, while Tunisia's campaign in 1994 ended abruptly after a 0-2 opening loss to Mali at the Olympic Stadium in El Menzah, a result that led to the dismissal of national coach Youssef Zouaoui.

Burkina Faso was the last host nation to suffer defeat in their opening match at the Africa Cup of Nations on home soil, losing 0-1 to Cameroon in Ouagadougou in 1998. Nevertheless, they exceeded expectations by reaching the semi-finals for the first time and concluded the tournament with pride.

One of the most notable opening match victories remains Algeria's overwhelming 5-1 win over Nigeria in Algiers in 1990, before the two teams met again in the final, where the Desert Warriors edged the Flying Green Eagles 1-0 to claim their first title at that time.

Other historic opening match wins include Tunisia's 4-0 thrashing of Ethiopia in 1965, Ivory Coast's 3-0 victory over Togo in their opening home match in 1984, and South Africa's significant 3-0 win over Cameroon, which paved the way for the Bafana Bafana to win the title in 1996.

The most thrilling opening match in Africa Cup of Nations history was in 2010, when Angola squandered a four-goal lead in the last 11 minutes, allowing Mali to stage a remarkable comeback and draw 4-4 in Luanda.

Morocco, for its part, failed to win its opening match in the only Africa Cup of Nations edition it hosted in 1988, relinquishing a first-half lead to draw 1-1 with Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo).

The Moroccan team conceded the equalizer just three minutes before the end, a bad omen as the hosts failed to claim the title after losing in the semi-finals to Cameroon, who went on to win the tournament that year.

In the upcoming edition, Morocco will strive to deliver a stronger performance and secure a convincing victory over Comoros, aiming to launch their dream of winning the title for the second time in their history, after their triumph in the 1976 edition in Ethiopia.