Hosts Morocco will face defending champions Senegal in a heavyweight semi-final at the 2026 U17 Africa Cup of Nations after an eventful quarter-final round that also saw Tanzania continue their remarkable run to the last four.
Egypt and Tanzania complete the semi-final line-up after a dramatic weekend in Rabat, where the tournament produced more late drama, penalty shootouts and surprise results in what has become one of the most unpredictable youth competitions in recent African football.
The standout story came from Tanzania, whose dramatic victory over Algeria was described as a “continental earthquake” after the East Africans eliminated one of the tournament favourites in spectacular fashion.
The quarter-final ended 3-3 after regulation time before Tanzania held their nerve to win the penalty shootout 4-3, completing one of the biggest upsets of the tournament.
The East Africans have emerged as one of the revelations of the competition, with their fearless attacking football and composure under pressure attracting attention across the continent.
Their reward is a semi-final clash against Egypt, who delivered one of the most convincing performances of the quarter-finals by dismantling Côte d’Ivoire 4-1.
The young Pharaohs showed ruthless attacking efficiency throughout the contest, with Mahmoud Mokhtar scoring twice in a dominant display that revived memories of Egypt’s only U17 continental title triumph in 1997.
Egypt are now aiming to end a 29-year wait for another crown and will head into Thursday’s match full of confidence after their emphatic quarter-final victory.
On the other side of the draw, Morocco continued their title defence with a hard-fought 1-0 victory against Cameroon in front of home supporters.
Mohamed Habib Zenbi scored the decisive goal in the 17th minute as the Atlas Cubs overcame a physically imposing Cameroonian side to book their place in the semi-finals.
Morocco have steadily grown into the tournament and now stand two matches away from retaining the continental title on home soil.
But they face perhaps their toughest challenge yet against a Senegal side that survived a tense West African derby against Mali.
The Young Lions of Teranga were pushed all the way in a tactical and tightly contested quarter-final that ended 1-1 after regulation time.
Senegal eventually triumphed 4-2 on penalties to keep alive hopes of retaining the trophy and setting up what many observers already see as the standout match of the tournament.
The Morocco-Senegal encounter brings together two of Africa’s strongest youth football systems and is expected to draw huge interest across the continent, particularly in francophone Africa where both nations have built reputations for producing elite young talent.
The semi-finals will both take place at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium in Rabat on Thursday, 28 May.
Egypt face Tanzania at 16:00 GMT before hosts Morocco meet Senegal at 19:00 GMT.
Although all four semi-finalists have already secured qualification for the FIFA U17 World Cup under CAF’s expanded qualification format, attention has now shifted fully to continental glory.
The new qualification system automatically guaranteed World Cup places to the eight quarter-finalists, ensuring Africa’s strongest youth nations will be represented on the global stage in Qatar in 2026.
