The African Cup of Nations is the biggest football competition organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), that brings together some of the continent’s biggest names to compete for the prestigious title. The countdown to the 2025 edition is underway, with the tournament set to kick-off in Morocco later this month.
Unfortunately, some of Africa’s biggest names will be absent from the tournament, denying supporters the chance to see them either because of injuries or due to their countries failing to qualify.
Here are five African stars who will not be present when the tournament begins on the 21st of December.
Andre Onana (Cameroon)
Despite including four goalkeepers in their 28-man squad for the 2025 African Cup of Nations tournament, goalkeeper Andre Onana was surprisingly left out of the squad.
The 29-year-old, currently on loan at Turkish club Trabzonspor after losing his spot at Manchester United, was expected to be part of the squad, making his omission a major surprise.
He has earned 53 caps for the Indomitable Lions and featured for the full 90 minutes in their 1-0 loss to the Democratic Republic of Congo during last month’s CAF World Cup playoffs.
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Benjamin Fredrick (Nigeria)
Another notable absentee from the African Cup of Nations is young Nigerian defender Benjamin Fredrick, who is expected to miss the tournament after picking up a knee injury in training for Belgian club Dender.
The 20-year-old has enjoyed a remarkable rise and was an important member of the Super Eagles team for their final six World Cup qualifying matches, including the CAF playoff games against Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Serhou Guirassy (Guinea)
Borussia Dortmund striker Serhou Guirassy will miss the 2025 African Cup of Nations as Guinea failed to qualify for the tournament after their third place finish in group H, with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania picking up the automatic spots instead.
The 29-year-old netted six times in the process, only behind Morocco’s Brahim Diaz, but will miss out on a second consecutive tournament after making his debut at the previous edition in the Ivory Coast.
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Antoine Semenyo (Ghana)
Ghana’s failure to qualify for the 2025 African Cup of Nations tournament means supporters will be deprived of the opportunity of seeing electric winger Antoine Semenyo in action at the continental tournament.
The Bournemouth talisman could not help the Black Stars avoid a dismal qualifying campaign, where they finished bottom of their group after accumulating just three points.
At just 25, he has time to still make more appearances at the showpiece event.
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Yankuba Minteh (The Gambia)
Yankuba Minteh remains one of Africa’s most exciting young talents, but will be absent from the continental event as the Gambia failed to attain a top-two finish from group A.
The Scorpions finished third on eight points behind the Comoros and Tunisia and failed to reach a third ever appearance at the tournament after previously playing in 2021 and 2023.
