2027 AFCON: Aboubacar Camara secures Burkina Faso's first victory, 1-0 against Central African Republic
Burkina Faso defeated the Central African Republic 1-0 on Monday, September 28, 2026, at the Larbi-Zaouli Stadium in Casablanca, during the second matchday of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. This is the Stallions' first success in this campaign, following a draw on the opening day.
Camara delivers for the Stallions in the 60th minute
The first half ended in a goalless stalemate. Dominant in possession, the Burkinabè struggled against a compact and well-organized Central African block, only truly threatening their opponent at the very end of the first half with an Arthur Zagré free kick, reports Burkina24.
The breakthrough came at the hour mark: set up by Zagré, Aboubacar Camara beat the Central African goalkeeper in the 60th minute. The Burkinabè attacking trio, featuring Lassina Traoré, Ousseni Bouda, and Abdoul Fessal Tapsoba, struggled to create clear-cut chances, hindered by the state of the pitch, according to the same media outlet.
Group F wide open
With this victory, Burkina Faso brings its total to four points and provisionally takes the lead in Group F, which also includes Benin and Mauritania, notes Africa Top Sports. The final standings for this matchday will depend on the Benin-Mauritania match scheduled for September 29.
The match was played far from Bangui. Like several national teams on the continent, the Central African Republic plays its "home" matches abroad, in this case in Morocco. It is a sporting handicap—no home crowd, no familiarity—but also an economic one, as ticket sales and the benefits of an international match escape the host country. Catching up on infrastructure remains one of the most concrete challenges for African football.
Heading to Buenos Aires
The Stallions will not have much time to rest. According to Africa Top Sports, they will face Argentina in a friendly match on October 3, 2026, in Buenos Aires, before returning to the qualifiers against Mauritania. It is a prestigious fixture against one of the best teams in the world, which also speaks to the position Burkinabè football has carved out on the international stage.
This article was written in French with the help of artificial intelligence from the sources cited below, then translated from French automatically. Read the original.
