JUBA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Sudan national football team will lock horns with Niger on Wednesday in their first match in Group F of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers.

The two teams are set to play the match at the Juba Olympic Stadium in the capital of South Sudan due to the ongoing conflict in Sudan.

Sudanese coach James Kwesi Appiah said the game is the first step towards qualification for the AFCON tournament, which will be held in Morocco from December 21, 2025 to January 18, 2026.

"Our game against Niger is a big game, every country is very good, we prepared very well, all the players are in good form and we hope tomorrow we will give you a good game," Appiah told journalists at a press conference on Tuesday.

Sudan missed out on qualification for the 2023 AFCON tournament in Cote d'Ivoire.

Ezzaki Badou, coach of the Niger national team, said he expected a great match. "I think the game will be hard for both teams because we know Sudan did well in their group of qualifications for the [2026 FIFA] World Cup. They are first in their group, two points ahead of Senegal. It means tomorrow we'll have a strong team in front of us and also we are ready for that, our goal is to be in the 2025 AFCON competition in Morocco," he said.

Badou had a short stint at the helm of the Sudanese team before resigning abruptly in July 2023. Enditem

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