Breaking: Cadet Lions Qualify For U17 AFCON

The cadet Lions will be in Algeria for the 15th edition of the U17 AFCON after sailing through the zonal qualifiers with two wins from two.

The lads of Jean Pierre Fiala defeated the Central African Republic four-nil in the first game, before subsequently defeating Congo Brazzaville on Sunday, January 15th at the Limbe Omnisport stadium.

It was a relatively cagy affair in both stanzas up until Angel Yondjo scored the tie breaker at the 79th minute (his third in the competition). Djibrin Harouna’s goal in borrowed time (90+5) sealed Cameroon’s qualification.

Cameroon joins hosts Algeria, Morocco, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, South Africa and Zambia, while awaiting the winner between Congo Brazzaville and CAR to complete the puzzle of 12 teams.

The Cadet Lions will be on standby when CAR and Congo battle it out for the second available slot on Wednesday.

The TotalEnergies U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (previously known as the African U-17 Championship) is a bi-annual football competition organised by the sport’s African governing body, CAF. The competition has been held since 1995.

Cameroon are the defending champions, having won the 2019 edition as the 2021 edition was cancelled. Cameroon has two wins in total in the competition: 2003, and 2019.