AFCON 2022 soccer games today: Times, TV schedule, scores for matches in USA & Canada

The second round of group-stage matches at AFCON 2022 came to a close on Sunday with two matches each from Group E and Group F. 

Defending AFCON champion Algeria is on the cusp of elimination after a shock loss to Equatorial Guinea. It will need a victory in the final group match against group leader Ivory Coast, which experienced issues of its own, allowing a late Sierra Leone equalizer in a 2-2 draw. While Sierra Leone now has a path to qualification, the Elephants’ placement in Group E will come down to the showdown against Algeria.

There was no winner in the Gambia vs. Mali Group F matchup (1-1), but both are in good shape to advance at worst as a third-place team. Tunisia is also back in the running for the top spot in Group F after powering past Mauritania 4-0.

MORE: AFCON 2022 updated group standings

In the other AFCON groups, Nigeria and Cameroon have made strong early statements with two wins each, while Egypt bounced back from an opening match defeat with a victory against Guinea-Bissau.

How to watch AFCON 2022

• Dates: Jan. 9 through Feb. 6 (52 matches)
• Times: 8 a.m., 11 a.m., 2 p.m. ET
• TV Channels: beIN Sports, beIN Sports XTRA
• Spanish-language TV: beIN Sports en Espanol, beIN Sports XTRA en Espanol
• Streaming: fuboTV , beIN Sports Connect and other platforms

The AFCON tournament will be carried by beIN Sports in the USA and Canada, and coverage will be available in both English and Spanish.

Cable and satellite TV channels beIN Sports and beIN Sports en Espanol will carry matches, as will free channel beIN Sports XTRA. Fans can access all of them  on fuboTV , which is available for new users via a free trial .

beIN streams are also available for users of Fanatiz and YouTube TV. And since beIN XTRA is free, it’s available on a host of other streaming platforms including Roku and Pluto TV.

MORE: Updated list of AFCON top scorers

AFCON 2022 matches today

Sunday’s results have set up a dramatic final day in Group E next week. Defending champions Algeria lost a shocker to Equatorial Guinea and will now need to beat the top team in the group, Ivory Coast, which experienced a shocker of its own.

Ivory Coast goalkeeper Badra Ali Sangare will long be remembered for the epic mishap that led to Sierra Leone’s equalizer in the closing stages of their Group E match. His egregious fumble allowed the ball to spring free for a gift that Sierra Leone happily accepted for a late 2-2 draw that leaves it with a chance to advance on the final matchday.

MORE: Story behind team nicknames at AFCON

Mali is an outside favorite to win it all, and after a 1-1 draw against The Gambia, Mali knows that a win in the Group F finale against Mauritania will be enough to see it qualify as a No. 1-ranked team. Tunisia was among the top 10 pre-tournament favorites, and showed it in a 4-0 pummeling of Mauritania which puts the Tunisians back in contention to qualify from Group F.

AFCON schedule: Sunday, Jan. 16

AFCON upcoming schedule: Monday, Jan. 17

Group A will be the first to hand out its final verdicts on Monday and assign the first two spots in the Round of 16.

AFCON results: Saturday, Jan. 15

After knocking off Egypt, the Super Eagles of Nigeria recorded another convincing win against Sudan in Group D.

Meanwhile, Egypt had to sweat for its 1-0 win against Guinea-Bissau. Mohamed Salah got his first goal which proved the winner for the Egyptians. But they also needed the officials’ help to wipe out a potential equalizer with mere minutes remaining that could have put Egypt’s knockout-round qualification in jeopardy.

MORE: Updated AFCON 2022 schedule, results & highlights

AFCON 2022 tournament format

Similar to other continental championships and World Cup tournaments, the Africa Cup of Nations begins with a group stage, followed by knockout rounds all the way to the final. 

• Group stage: Jan. 9-20
• Round of 16:  Jan. 23-26
• Quarterfinals:  Jan. 29-30
• Semifinals:  Feb. 2-3
• Third place:  Feb. 6
• Final:  Feb. 6

The 24 nations are divided into six groups of four nations each. At the conclusion of round-robin group play — with three points awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss — the top two teams in each group based on points (and tiebreakers, if necessary) advance to the knockouts. The remaining slots in the Round of 16 will be filled out by the four best third-place finishers.

A predetermined knockout bracket will be played out all the way through to the final. If any knockout match ends in a tie after 90 minutes, the teams will play 30 minutes of extra time. If the draw persists, a penalty-kick shootout will determine the team to move on. The third-place match is the only one that would skip extra time and move straight to the shootout in case of a draw. 

For the first time in the competition’s history, all 52 matches will feature the use of a Video Assistant Referee (VAR).

MORE: Ranking the top 10 players at AFCON

Who will win AFCON 2022?

Judging by BetMGM’s odds, we could be in for another Senegal-Algeria final. The nations were given the shortest odds to win it all and their odds only shortened in the week before the AFCON kickoff. Senegal is given a slight edge over defending champion Algeria.

It’s not a surprise to see some of the other traditional African powers on the list of 10 nations most likely to win it, but based on the odds movement it looks as if bettors have been fading Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana and Tunisia in the lead-up. 

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