Senegal and Mali renew a familiar West African rivalry when they face off in the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 at the Grande Stade de Tanger today by 5 pm.
The Teranga Lions have made Tangier their home at this tournament, playing all four of their matches in the city, while Mali arrive after a more travelled route. The Eagles played three of their games in Casablanca, including their Round of 16 tie, and one group-stage fixture in Rabat.
Despite the frequency of their meetings over the years, this will be only the second time Senegal and Mali have faced each other at the AFCON finals. Their sole previous encounter came in the group stage of the 2004 tournament, when a 1–1 draw saw Dramane Traoré put Mali ahead before Habib Beye struck back for Senegal in first-half stoppage time.
Both teams progressed to the quarter-finals on that occasion, with Mali finishing top of Group B and Senegal advancing as runners-up.
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History broadly favours the 2021 champions. Thursday’s contest will be the 41st meeting between the sides, with Senegal leading the overall head-to-head record with 19 wins to Mali’s eight, alongside 13 draws. The Teranga Lions have also enjoyed greater attacking success, scoring 61 goals to Mali’s 38 across those encounters.
The Lions of Teranga’s dominance has been particularly pronounced in recent years. They are unbeaten in their last 13 matches against Mali, recording six wins and seven draws. Mali’s last victory over their neighbours dates back to November 1997, when they claimed a 2–1 friendly win in Dakar.
The most recent meeting between the two sides came in March 2019, also in a friendly in Dakar, and ended dramatically. Mali led through Adama Traoré before two late goals from Sadio Mané, in the 87th and 90th minutes, sealed a 2–1 comeback win for Senegal.
With a semi-final place at stake, past records may count for little, but Senegal will enter the tie confident of extending a long-standing advantage, while Mali will hope this knockout clash offers the perfect stage to rewrite history.
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