Seven combined Africa Cup of Nations trophies, 13 combined World Cup appearances, two African football powerhouses, and a pair of experienced international managers in the dugouts – that's the brief summary of tonight's 2027 AFCON qualifying derby between Ivory Coast and Ghana.Both the Elephants and the Black Stars enjoyed relatively successful World Cup campaigns in the USA, Canada, and Mexico, reaching the Round of 32, where they were eliminated by Norway and Colombia, respectively.🇬🇭 GHANA vs CÔTE D’IVOIRE 🇨🇮 — ALL-TIME RECORD!⚔️ 36 meetings🇬🇭 Ghana: 13 wins | 50 goals🇨🇮 Côte d’Ivoire: 12 wins | 44 goals🤝 Draws: 11A closely contested rivalry with just one win separating the two sides. 🔥🏆 Who takes the bragging rights tonight? 👀⚽ pic.twitter.com/unlmv1mvns— SPORTSworldGhana.com (@sportworldghana) September 24, 2026 Still, they enter the qualifiers ready for battle.Beyond the clash between two African powerhouses, the game in Bouake will also pit two super-experienced international head coaches against each other – the Elephants' boss Herve Renard and the Black Stars' manager Carlos Queiroz.High-profile coaches Herve Renard and Carlos Queiroz face each other today when Ivory Coast host Ghana as 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying kicks off.https://t.co/2sQ39ODnIX pic.twitter.com/w4t38NoA18— Game Yetu (@GameYetu) September 24, 2026 And they are not super-experienced because of their age – after all, the Frenchman is only 57 – but because of the number of national teams they have coached. Believe it or not, they have managed 15 different national teams between them, more than half of them from Africa!Renard has been in charge of Zambia (two spells), Angola, the Ivory Coast (two spells), Morocco, Saudi Arabia (two spells), and Tunisia.Inaki Williams leaves Ghana behind – but not his rootsQueiroz, meanwhile, has managed Portugal (two spells), the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Iran (two spells), Colombia, Egypt, Qatar, Oman, and Ghana.With that much experience, both surely have a few tricks up their sleeves. Now, we only have to wait and see who will prevail tonight – the savvy Frenchman or the wily Portuguese.So far, the two have met twice, with Queiroz beating Renard at the 2018 World Cup (Iran-Morocco 1-0) and the 57-year-old settling the score seven years later at the FIFA Arab Cup (Saudi Arabia-Oman 2-1).2027 AFCON QUALIFIERSRound 1Thursday16.00: (2.35) Namibia (3.00) Congo (3.10)19.00: (1.28) DR Congo (4.90) Equatorial Guinea (10.5)19.00: (1.62) Libya (3.40) Botswana (5.90)19.00: (1.75) Mauritania (3.35) Central African Republic (4.70)22.00: (1.33) Cameroon (4.50) Comoros (9.50)22.00: (1.62) Ivory Coast (3.50) Ghana (5.60)22.00: (2.50) Sierra Leone (2.95) Zimbabwe (2.90)22.00: (1.43) Tunisia (4.10) Uganda (7.25)Friday16.00: (2.40) Tanzania (2.70) Guinea-Bissau (3.40)18.00: (1.55) Niger (3.50) Lesotho (6.75)19.00: (1.15) Gambia (7.00) Somalia (15.0)19.00: (1.67) Malawi (3.45) South Sudan (5.20)19.00: (1.20) Nigeria (5.80) Madagascar (13.0)19.00: (1.80) Rwanda (3.35) Liberia (4.40)19.00: (1.77) Sudan (3.35) Ethiopia (4.60)19.00: (1.58) Togo (3.45) Burundi (6.25)22.00: (1.23) Algeria (5.50) Zambia (12.0)22.00: (1.50) Burkina Faso (3.60) Benin (7.25)22.00: (1.38) Egypt (4.20) Angola (8.50)22.00: (2.00) Mali (3.05) Cabo Verde (3.90)22.00: (1.18) Morocco (6.50) Gabon (13.0)22.00: (1.25) Senegal (5.20) Mozambique (11.0)Saturday16.00: (1.40) Kenya (4.20) Eritrea (7.75)19.00: (1.85) S.Africa (3.30) Guinea (4.20)***odds are subject to change***
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