With Botswana and Uganda, it is one of the smallest teams participating in this CAN 2025. Sudan, present for the second time in the last seven editions, returns to the premier competition in Africa after a surprising elimination phase.
Beaten by Angola, the Falcons of Jediane snatched second qualifying place from Niger and especially from Ghana, although they are a reference on the continent. Carried by a great collective strength, the Sudanese have the advantage of all knowing each other perfectly. Indeed, eleven players selected by coach James Kwesi Appiah play at Al-Hilal Club in Omdurman, the juggernaut of the local championship.
Placed in the same group as Algeria, Burkina Faso and Equatorial Guinea, Sudan will have a lot to do to get through the first round, something it has not managed to do since its journey to the quarter-finals in 2012.
Sudan calendar
The list of selected players
Guardians: Aboeshren Aboeshre (Al-Hilal/SOU), Mohamed Elnour (Al-Merrik SC/SOU), Monged Elneel (El Merrikh FC/SOU.Sud)
Defenders: Mohamed Saeed (Al-Hilal/SOU), Altayeb Abdelrazig (Al-Hilal/SOU), Mustafa Abdelgadir (Al-Hilal/SOU), Yasser Awad (Al-Hilal/SOU), Bakhit Khamis (Al-Ahli/LIB), Mazin Mohamedein (Al-Akhdar/LIB), Awad Zaid (Al-Merrikh) SC/SOU), Ahmed Abdelmonem (sans club), Mohamed Kesra (Jamus FC/SOU.Sud)
Environments: Abuaagla Abdalla (Al-Ahly/LIB), Walieldin Khidir (Al-Hilal/SOU), Abdelrazig Omer (Al-Hilal/SOU), Ammar Tayfour (CS Sfaxien/TUN), Salaheldin Adil (Al-Hilal/SOU), Musa Hussain (Al-Merrikh SC/SOU), Sheddy Ezeldin (FC Den Bosch/PB), Amar Yunis (Avondale) FC/AUS)
Attackers: Yasser Mozamil (Al-Hilal/SOU), Mohamed Abdelrhman (Al-Hilal/SOU), John Otenyal (Al-Akhdar/LIB), Mohamed Essa (Uthai Thani/THA), Elgozoli Hussain (Al-Hilal/SOU), Abobaker Essa (Chonburi FC/THA), Mohamed Teya (Al-Merrikh SC/SOU)
Player to watch: Walieldin Khidir
He is one of the executives of this Sudanese selection. A hard-working midfielder, the 30-year-old native of Khartoum has played in nine of the last twelve matches for the Falcons of Jediane.
Nine years after honoring his first cap, on September 2, 2016, the Al-Hilal player is preparing to play his second CAN after the 2022 edition, where he played the three group matches and scored his very first goal for the selection, against Nigeria on January 15.
Accustomed to representing his country – he has 57 caps – Khidir never hesitates to answer the call to the flags, even for less recognized competitions. In addition to the CAN, he also participated in the Arab Cup (2021) and the African Nations Championship (2023, 2025), a tournament reserved for players playing in African national championships.
