Originally placed in Group C alongside Senegal, Benin will finally be placed in Group A at the 9th edition of the African Francophonie Games, which will take place in Kinshasa, DR Congo.
Postponed twice due to the health crisis, the 9th edition of the Francophonie Games will be held from July 28 to August 6, 2023, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Several African nations will participate in this sports and cultural competition.
Also participating, Benin was initially placed in Group C alongside Senegal, Mauritania, and Cameroon. However, due to the withdrawal of several countries from the tournament, the U20 Cheetahs have been finally moved to Group A. The Beninese juniors will now face the host nation and Mali in the first round.
It should be noted that nine teams will now participate in the U20 football tournament. Thus, three groups of three countries will animate the group stage. The U20 Cheetahs will play their first match against the U20 Leopards on July 28, starting at 8:00 PM. Then, Benin will face Mali for their second and final group match on Tuesday, August 1, at 3:00 PM.
With this new format of the competition, the top teams from the three (03) groups, as well as the best runner-up, will qualify for the semi-finals. As a reminder, Mathias Déguénon and his team have been in the Congolese capital since Tuesday, July 25.
The groups: Group A
DR Congo (host) Benin Mali
Group B
Senegal Congo Burkina Faso
Group C
Cameroon Niger Lebanon.
