South Africa, Senegal and the Six Nations That Have Booked Early Qualification to AFCON 2023

• Seven teams have qualified for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, including hosts Cote d'Ivoire
• Senegal are the defending champions of the flagship continental competition after beating record holders Egypt on penalties at the last edition
• The biennial tournament, which is the 34th edition, will be held between January and February 2024

Defending champions Senegal headline a list of six nations to have booked an early qualification for the next year's Africa Cup of Nations.

With two matches remaining to draw the curtains on the qualification stage for the biggest football gathering on the continent, six teams including hosts, Cote d'Ivoire, have already grabbed their tickets.

Sports Brief takes a look at the countries that have secured their berths in Ivory Coast, with the remaining 17 nations looking to come to the party later.

Morocco

Arguably the best nation on the continent, the Atlas Lions unsurprisingly secured an early qualification for the flagship tournament next year on the back of a memorable World Cup run.

Uruguay's World Cup squad 2022: Which players represented Uruguay in this World Cup?

Football

Walid Regragui's charges booked their spot in Cote d'Ivoire without kicking a ball in the recent qualifiers.

Due to the permutations of Group K, Morocco punched their ticket after sealing six points in two games.

Algeria

The two-time African champions are among the few nations to have punched their ticket to next year's African Cup of Nations.

Les Fennecs secured a ticket to the 2023 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations with a 1-0 victory over Niger.

The win was their fourth in a row in Group F and sees Djamel Belmadi's side cement their hold at the summit of the group with a 100 per cent record, winning all four of their group games.

For Algeria, it was another vital victory that gives them a chance to battle for a title they lost in Cameroon last year.

Giant-killers Grimsby angling for FA Cup fairytale at Brighton

Football

Senegal

Defending champions Senegal have also qualified for the defence of their title after edging out Mozambique 1-0 in Maputo.

The West African nation have been flawless throughout the qualifiers, bagging a maximum of 12 points out of four group games.

Aliou Cisse's boys will contest Morocco's claim as the best side on the continent, with the 2023 AFCON presenting the best opportunity to affirm the claim.

South Africa

Bafana Bafana made it to the tournament with a 2-1 win over Liberia in Monrovia.

Hugo Broos's charges make a return to the biennial competition after agonizingly missing out on the last edition in Cameroon.

The Belgian manager, who led Cameroon to its fifth continental crown, has already disclosed his targets for next year's competition, per CAFOnline.

Burkina Faso

The Stallions of Burkina Faso just almost made it to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, sharing the spoils with Togo on Tuesday.

Man City likely to win as supercomputer makes interesting Champions League predictions

Football

With two sets of matches remaining, the Burkinabes, who reached the semifinals of the 2021 AFCON, now lead Group B with 10 points, three more than second-placed Cape Verde and eight more than third-placed Eswatini, per Supersport.

When the qualifiers resume in June, Burkina Faso will play Cape Verde in a top-of-the-table matchup.

Tunisia

The Carthage Eagles joined the six nations to book their spot in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations after a 1-0 victory over Libya in Benghazi on Tuesday night.

They now lead Group J by 10 points, one point better than second-placed Equatorial Guinea and seven points better than Libya, with two rounds of matches remaining.

The fact that Tunisia qualified while remaining unbeaten and not giving up a goal thrilled head coach Jalel Kadri.