Africa Cup of Nations 2025: Participation “brings hope” to Sudan amid civil war

Striker Abu Bakr Issa said that Sudan’s participation in the African Cup of Nations “brings hope” to the people of the country amid the civil war the country is witnessing.

The country has been in the grip of what the United Nations calls the world’s largest humanitarian crisis since April 2023, when a power struggle between the army and a paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Force, led to conflict.

More than 150,000 people have been killed and more than 12 million forced to flee their homes, with widespread famine and reports of genocide in the western Darfur region.

The conflict forced Sudan to play all its qualifying matches away from home, but it succeeded in booking its place in the African Cup of Nations for only the fourth time since 1976.

The 1970 champions face Algeria (December 24), Equatorial Guinea (December 28) and Burkino Faso (December 31) in the group stage, and Issa says each match represents a “big deal” and a potential distraction for the Sudanese.

“There are a lot of bad things happening in Sudan,” Issa told the BBC. “As players, we know how important football is to our country.”

“There’s not a lot of smiles at the moment, so we’re trying to use football as a way to take their minds off.” [the war].

“Even qualifying for the Africa Cup of Nations and having the fans there to cheer us on – the fact that we are there really brings hope.”