MATCH FACTS: Burkina Faso and Mali in showdown for final place at TotalEnergies CAF U17 AFCON, Morocco 2025

Burkina Faso and Mali clash in the first of the semi-final matches at the TotalEnergies CAF Under-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), Morocco 2025 with an intriguing tussle at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium in Casablanca on Tuesday (kick-off 17:00 local time; 16:00 GMT).

Burkina Faso and Mali will clash for a sixth time at the TotalEnergies CAF U17 AFCON having previously met in 1999, 2001, 2005 and twice in 2023. 

Of their previous five meetings Burkina Faso has three wins to Mali’s two. All five of their previous games have produced a winner and there is yet to be a draw in this fixture.

The teams first met at the tournament in 1999, Burkina Faso winning a semi-final clash 1-0. They again faced off in the group stages in 2001 with another 1-0 victory for Burkina Faso.

In what was the opening game for both teams at the competition, Burkina Faso would go onto end as runners up for a second tournament in a row. Mali would end in third.

In the group stages in 2005, despite a 3-1 win for Mali, they were unable to progress and both teams went out in the pool stages.

Their last meetings came in 2023, first in a group game which Mali won 1-0. They also met in the play-off for third with Burkina Faso winning 2-1.

With Burkina Faso and Mali meeting in this game, it means we will have a West African team in the final for a 14th edition in a row, keeping up the tradition of having at least one representative from the region since 1995.

BURKINA FASO FACTS
·       Burkina Faso reached their sixth semi-final, with only Mali (8) and Nigeria (7) reaching the last-4 on more occasions.

·       Burkina Faso have also previously featured in the last four in 1999, 2001, 2009, 2011 and 2023.

·       Their record in the last four with games decided on penalties registered as wins and losses reads P5 W3 L2.

·       Burkina Faso have won last four clashes in 1999, 2001 and 2011, while they lost in 2009 and 2023.

·       Victory will see Burkina Faso reach their fourth final. That will take them level with Nigeria and Ghana for the most number of appearances in the final.

·       Burkina Faso defeated Zambia 6-1 in the quarter-finals. It is their biggest win in the knockout rounds of the tournament.

·       Victory over Zambia in the last-8 was Burkina Faso’s joint biggest win at the finals along with a 5-0 group stage victory over Zimbabwe in 2009.

·       Burkina Faso have scored 12 goals at the current finals. The most they have scored at a single finals, overtaking the 11 they scored in 2011.

·       Burkina Faso are undefeated in their last eight games at the finals in open play. They have won seven of these games and drew one, which turned out to be a semi-final loss against Senegal in 2023 on penalties.

·       Burkina Faso’s last open play loss was against Mali in their first game in 2023, a 1-0 loss.

·       Since then, Burkina Faso have managed to score in their last eight games in the tournament.

·       Victory for Burkina Faso without needing penalties will see them win five games at the same finals in open play for the first time.

·       Burkina Faso have never won five games in a row in open play at the finals.

·       Burkina Faso’s record in the knockout rounds with games decided on penalties registered as wins and losses reads P11 W7 L4 (excludes result against Guinea in 2001 semi-final which was expunged).

·       They have won six games in open play and one on penalties in the knockout rounds, while they have two losses in open play and one on penalties.

·       Burkina Faso have been involved in two penalty shoot-out at the finals, their 2011 semi-final ended 1-1 before they won on spot-kicks 4-2 against Congo. While they lost their semi-final at the 2023 finals after the match finished 1-1, going down 5-4 to Senegal on spot-kicks.

·       Burkina Faso’s record in the last four at the tournament with games decided on penalties registered as wins and losses reads P3 W2 L1 (2001 game against Guinea not included).

·       Previously in last four clashes at the finals, Burkina Faso won 1-0 against Mali in 1999 and defeated Congo on penalties in 2011. They lost on penalties against Senegal in 2023 (2001 game against Guinea not included).

·       In 11 games beyond the group stages at the finals, Burkina Faso have only ever kept one clean-sheet. They have conceded in their last 10 games in the knockout rounds. Their last clean sheet was in their 1-0 win over Mali in the 1999 semi-finals.

·       Burkina Faso’s Ashraf Tapsoba has scored seven goals at the current finals, the most by any player since Nigeria’s Isaac Success netted the same number in 2013.

·       Tapsoba has scored in all four of Burkina Faso’s games at the tournament thus far. Of his seven goals, five have been from open play and two have been spot-kicks.

·       Tapsoba has also made two assists and has nine goal contributions, having been involved in 75% of his side’s 12 goals in the competition.

·       Of all of the four semi-finalists, Burkina Faso have had the most shots on target (26) and scored the most goals (12).

·       Burkina Faso’s played have won 84 tackles, more than any other team.

MALI FACTS
·       Mali are featuring in their eighth semi-final at the finals, the most of any team.

·       Mali overcame Tunisia 10-9 on penalties in the quarter-finals after the teams played to a 1-1 draw.

·       Mali have reached the semi-finals for a fourth tournament in a row that they are participating in along with 2015, 2017 and 2023.

·       Victory will take Mali to their fourth final along with 1997, 2015 and 2017. Should Mali reach the final, they will join Nigeria and Ghana with four appearances in the decider.

·       Mali, in their last 19 games at the finals, have lost just two games in open play, against the Cote d’Ivoire at the current finals and Burkina Faso in the play-off for third in 2023 (W12 D5).

·       Mali are playing their 45th game at the finals, going level with Nigeria for the most games played in the tournament. As they will featured in two more games, they will overtake Nigeria and become the team who has played the most games at the final.

·       Mali’s record in direct knockout games at the finals, including quarter-final and semi-finals, and including wins and losses on penalties, reads P9 W5 L4.

·       Mali have been involved in four penalty shoot-outs at the finals (W2 L2).

·       They lost 4-3 to Nigeria (1-1) in 2001 and they defeated Guinea (0-0) 2-0 in 2017. In 2023 they lost to Morocco (0-0) 6-5 on penalties and at the current finals they beat Tunisia (1-1) 10-9 in an epic shoot-out in the quarter-finals.

·       Mali’s record in the last four at the tournament including wins and losses on penalties reads P7 W3 L4.

·       Mali in previous last four clashes at the tournament lost to Nigeria in 1995, going down 3-1. They also lost to Burkina Faso in 1999, losing 1-0, while they were beaten by Nigeria again on penalties in 2001. In 2023 they lost to Morocco on penalties.

·       Mali have won last-4 clashes previously in 1997, defeating Ghana 2-1. In 2015 they won 2-1 over Guinea and in 2017 they defeated Guinea on penalties after the game ended 0-0.

·       This is the seventh time in eight semi-final games at the tournament that Mali will be facing West African opponents in the last-4 after previous clashes against Burkina Faso (twice), Ghana, Guinea (twice) and Nigeria (twice).

·       Mali have scored the fewest goals (7) amongst the four semi-finalists and have also conceded the most goals amongst the remaining four teams (6).

·       Mali have completed 1361 passes, the most among the semi-finalists.

·       Mali have a passing accuracy of 79.31%, the best percentage among the semi-finalists.