Odilon Kossounou and Ivory Coast take on Guinea-Bissau in the opening game on Saturday night. The hosts then face Nigeria on 18 January, when Kossounou was set to come up against Werkself teammate Victor Boniface until the striker suffered an injury during preparations for the tournament, forcing him to return to Germany early. The Ivorians' third and final fixture in Group A is against Equatorial Guinea on 22 January.
Meanwhile, Edmond Tapsoba and Burkina Faso play their first match against Mauritiana in Group D on 16 January. That's followed by the clash with Algeria on 20 January, before Angola await on 23 January.
Then on 17 January, the third Bayer 04 player will get started in the tournament as Amine Adli and Morocco face Tanzania in Group F. In their second group game, the World Cup semi-finalists meet DR Congo on 21 January, before concluding the group stage against Zambia three days later. For Adli, who switched allegiance to Morocco in autumn of last year having represented France at youth level, the Africa Cup of Nations is the first major international tournament of his career. For Kossounou and Tapsoba it's their second appearance at AFCON.
The round of 16 kicks off three days after the group stage, from 27 to 30 January. The quarter-finals will be played on 2 and 3 February, with the two semis taking place on 7 February. Following the third-place playoff on 10 February, the final will be held the next day at 21:00 CET.
THE GROUP MATCHES AT A GLANCE (all times CET)
Odilon Kossounou (Ivory Coast/Group A):
13.01, 21:00: Ivory Coast v Guinea-Bissau
18.01, 18:00: Ivory Coast v Nigeria
22.01, 18:00: Ivory Coast v Equatorial Guinea
Edmond Tapsoba (Burkina Faso/Group D):
16.01, 15:00: Burkina Faso v Mauritiana
20.01, 15:00: Algeria v Burkina Faso
23.01, 21:00: Angola v Burkina Faso
Amine Adli (Morocco/Group F):
17.01, 18:00: Morocco v Tanzania
21.01, 15:00: Morocco v DR Congo
24.01, 21:00: Zambia v Morocco
The opener in the UEFA Champions League 2025/26: On Thursday, 18 September (kick-off: 18:45 CEST), the Werkself will kick off the new UCL campaign at FC Copenhagen. Ahead of the clash, head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about his return to Parken, the Danish record champions' home ground. Goalkeeper Mark Flekken, for his part, was looking forward to his first Champions League game.
Show moreBayer 04's new coach Kasper Hjulmand will kick off the league phase of the UEFA Champions League in his home country: The Danish double winners FC Copenhagen welcome the Werkself to the Parken Stadium on Thursday, 18 September (kick-off: 18:45 CEST/live on DAZN). Hjulmand not only knows the stadium, but also some of the FC Copenhagen players from his time as the Denmark coach. The lowdown on our next opponents.
Show moreBayer 04 are away to FC Copenhagen on the first matchday of the league phase in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League. The game against the Danish record champions is on Thursday, 18 September (kick-off: 18:45 CEST) at the Parken Stadium. Ahead of the match, here are some travel tips from Bayer 04 partner weloveholidays for all travelling fans of the Werkself.
Show moreTickets are now on open sale for two more Bundesliga home games for the Bayer 04 Women. Every Werkself fan can now buy tickets for the matches at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium against runners-up VfL Wolfsburg and promoted club Hamburg SV. The latest information at a glance.
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