If Friday’s rehearsal is anything to go by, then Gabon will stage one of the best opening ceremonies in the history of football.
One that could match the standards of Brazil, Germany and other heavyweights as far as hosting football is concerned.
The tournament cost an estimated $700m to put on, with $220m going into a stadium that would not be used since it is not completed.
That notwithstanding,the stage is set for the opening ceremony this afternoon with the world looking forward to a spectacular display of rich African culture.
With some level of political tension in Gabon, President Ali Bongo Ondimba, who has ruled the country since his father's death in 2009, would ensure that the tournament unites the people.
The national team after the ceremony is expected to get fans cheering up all the way through to victory.
Gabon need their captain, star striker and something of a national hero, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to fire, in order, as their coach Jose Antonio Camacho put it, unite the country.
Camacho is a former Spain and Real Madrid manager, so he knows all about pressure, but he will never before have had so much riding on the shoulders of his team.
If Gabon are to lift a first title, they will have to overcome a string of talented sides. This AFCON is nearly impossible to predict, with no stand-out squad and several worthy champions waiting to emerge.
Holders Ivory Coast have finally shed the two tags that haunted them throughout the last decade, the perennial nearly-men managing to take the title two years ago as the 'golden generation' breathed its last.
That generation, featuring Premier League stars like Didier Drogba, Yaya and Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Eboue and Didier Zokora, have all retired. Only Salomon Kalou survives of that contingent, and he is now on the fringes.
In their place are a new group, typified by Manchester United defender Eric Bailly, who know only success at the Cup of Nations, and have been boosted by the recent addition of former England winger Wilfried Zaha. Zaha is ideally suited to a tournament which is packed full of wide talent, and has impressed in the warm-up games for his new national team.
Ghana, the last tournament's beaten finalists, arrive once again with a cloud of doubt surrounding both their talisman Asamoah Gyan, who has injury issues, and manager Avram Grant, a constant source of frustration for their fans.
Grant led the Black Stars to the final two years ago after just two months in charge, but his team have failed to progress since then, and he has faced constant speculation about his job.
His response, typically, has been one of quiet indifference. Rather than focus on his job, he spoke this week of growing a beard for the tournament, because his daughter told him it would bring luck.
Other contenders include Senegal, featuring Liverpool's Sadio Mane as part of a plethora of attacking talent and Egypt, armed with rejuvenated Chelsea flop Mohamed Salah, and Arsenal's energetic Mohamed Elneny.
The Pharoahs are this competition's most successful ever team, and are smarting from three consecutive failures to qualify. There is a belief around the squad that they can shock a few people.
Then there are the teams that are, if not just hear for the ride, then at least much less fancied. According to Guinea-Bissau coach Baciro Cande - one of only four local coaches in the tournament - just qualifying sparked celebrations the like of which had not been seen since the country won independence
There were similar scenes in Uganda, where the reaction to reaching the tournament was one of delirium, and the teenage striker who scored the crucial goal was inundated with marriage proposals.
Over the next three weeks, more scenes and stories like those are sure to emerge. Whether they are enough to energise the Gabonese public and quieten the planned opposition protests remains to be seen.
But, as is often the way with tournaments in this part of the world, the focus is not all on the football. Â Additional files from Mail Online
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