Group-by-group: Perfect starts for Morocco, Côte d’Ivoire and Guinea-Bissau after Matchday Two of AFCON 2027 qualifiers
Morocco, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, South Africa, DR Congo, Rwanda, Mali and Guinea-Bissau are among the sides to have made significant early moves after the second round of matches in the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations PAMOJA 2027 qualifiers.
Morocco, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, South Africa, DR Congo, Rwanda, Mali and Guinea-Bissau have all won their opening two matches, while Egypt, Senegal and Algeria remain unbeaten despite dropping points.
Matchday Two also produced several eye-catching results, with Egypt beating South Sudan 5-0, South Africa recording the same scoreline against Eritrea and Guinea-Bissau stunning Nigeria 3-0.
Ghana and Nigeria are among the established sides already facing early pressure, while qualification races in Groups F, H, I and J remain particularly tight after two rounds.
One Matchday Two fixture remains outstanding in Group B, with Angola and Malawi still to meet, before the qualifiers resume in November with another important round of matches.
Group A: Morocco perfect as Gabon respond
Morocco maintained their perfect start with a 2-0 victory over Lesotho, following their opening win by the same scoreline against Gabon.
Brahim Diaz broke Lesotho's resistance on the stroke of half-time before Azzedine Ounahi added the second in the 82nd minute, leaving the Atlas Lions with six points, four goals scored and none conceded.
Gabon recovered from their opening defeat by beating Niger 2-0 to move into second place on three points. Niger also have three points, while Lesotho remain without a point after two defeats.
Matchday 2 results: Lesotho 0-2 Morocco; Gabon 2-0 Niger.
Next fixtures: Morocco v Niger; Gabon v Lesotho — November.
Group B: Egypt go top with five-goal victory
Egypt produced one of the biggest victories of Matchday Two by beating South Sudan 5-0, with Omar Marmoush scoring twice.
Mostafa Zico opened the scoring before Marmoush struck twice in the second half, with Ibrahim Adel and Hamza Abdelkarim also finding the net.
The result moved the Pharaohs onto four points after their opening goalless draw against Angola, while South Sudan remain without a point following successive defeats.
Malawi have three points from their opening victory over South Sudan, while Angola have one, with their Matchday Two meeting still to be played.
Matchday 2 result: South Sudan 0-5 Egypt.
Outstanding Matchday 2 fixture: Angola v Malawi. (Tuesday 6th October)
Next fixtures: Angola v South Sudan; Egypt v Malawi — November.
Group C: Côte d’Ivoire and Gambia pull clear
Côte d’Ivoire and The Gambia have established an early six-point advantage over Ghana and Somalia after both maintained perfect records.
The Elephants had to wait until the 89th minute for Yann Gboho to break Somalia's resistance before Bazoumana Touré added another in stoppage time to secure a 2-0 victory.
The Gambia produced one of the round's most remarkable comebacks, recovering from 2-0 down to beat Ghana 4-2. Muhammed Badamosi and Omar Colley wiped out goals from Ernest Nuamah and Felix Afena-Gyan before Ebrima Colley scored twice to complete the turnaround.
Côte d’Ivoire and The Gambia have six points each, while Ghana and Somalia remain without a point.
Matchday 2 results: Ghana 2-4 The Gambia; Somalia 0-2 Côte d’Ivoire.
Next fixtures: Ghana v Somalia; Côte d’Ivoire v The Gambia — November.
Group D: South Africa make it six from six
South Africa strengthened their position in Group D with an emphatic 5-0 victory over Eritrea in Cairo.
Relebohile Mofokeng scored twice, while Sphephelo Sithole, Iqraam Rayners and Luther Singh also found the net as Pitso Mosimane's side followed their opening 2-1 victory over Guinea with another win.
Guinea responded to their Matchday One defeat by beating co-hosts Kenya 1-0, moving them onto three points.
South Africa lead with six points, with Guinea on three and Eritrea and Kenya on one each. With Kenya already qualified as co-hosts, South Africa, Guinea and Eritrea are effectively competing for the group's available qualification berth.
Matchday 2 results: Eritrea 0-5 South Africa; Guinea 0-1 Kenya
Next fixtures: Guinea v Eritrea; South Africa v Kenya — November.
Group E: DR Congo maintain perfect record
DR Congo made it two victories from two by beating Zimbabwe 2-1, building on their opening 2-0 success against Equatorial Guinea.
Equatorial Guinea also responded positively to their Matchday One defeat, edging Sierra Leone 1-0 to collect their first three points.
DR Congo therefore lead the group with six points, while Zimbabwe and Equatorial Guinea have three each.
Sierra Leone are bottom without a point after following their dramatic 3-2 opening defeat against Zimbabwe with another loss.
Matchday 2 results: Equatorial Guinea 1-0 Sierra Leone; Zimbabwe 1-2 DR Congo.
Next fixtures: DR Congo v Sierra Leone; Equatorial Guinea v Zimbabwe — November.
Group F: Benin and Burkina Faso move level
Group F remains finely balanced after Benin and Burkina Faso both collected their first victories of the campaign.
Benin beat Mauritania 2-1, surviving late pressure after Rodolfo Aloko helped establish a two-goal advantage before Aboubakary Koïta pulled one back.
Burkina Faso secured a 1-0 away victory over Central African Republic, moving level with Benin on four points after both sides drew their opening meeting.
Mauritania are one point behind on three, while Central African Republic remain without a point.
Matchday 2 results: Central African Republic 0-1 Burkina Faso; Benin 2-1 Mauritania.
Next fixtures: Benin v Central African Republic; Burkina Faso v Mauritania — November.
Group G: Cameroon lead tightly packed race
Cameroon moved to the top of Group G despite being held 1-1 away by Congo.
Congo took the lead through Geltany Bantsiele before goalkeeper Melvin Zinga's own goal early in the second half brought the Indomitable Lions level.
Comoros collected their first victory by beating Namibia 1-0 through Benjaloud Youssouf's 54th-minute goal.
Cameroon lead with four points, but Comoros and Namibia are only one point behind on three, while Congo collected their first point.
Matchday 2 results: Comoros 1-0 Namibia; Congo 1-1 Cameroon.
Next fixtures: Cameroon v Namibia; Comoros v Congo — 11 November.
Group H: Uganda lead after Libya victory
Co-hosts Uganda moved to the top of Group H after edging Libya 1-0.
Arnold Vula scored the decisive goal in first-half stoppage time as the Cranes followed their opening 1-1 draw away to Tunisia with victory.
Tunisia were held 2-2 by Botswana, meaning the latter have drawn both of their opening qualifiers.
Uganda lead with four points, although they are already qualified as co-hosts. Botswana and Tunisia have two points each, while Libya have one, leaving the three non-host nations separated by a single point in the race for the available qualifying place.
Matchday 2 results: Tunisia 2-2 Botswana; Uganda 1-0 Libya.
Next fixtures: Tunisia v Libya; Uganda v Botswana — November.
Group I: Algeria fight back as Zambia respond
Algeria remain unbeaten after recovering from two goals down to draw 2-2 away to Burundi.
An own goal from Farès Chaïbi and Jean Girumugisha's strike gave Burundi a stunning 2-0 advantage inside 12 minutes, but Mohamed El Amine Belloumi reduced the deficit before Adil Boulbina equalised in the second half.
Zambia bounced back from their opening defeat against Algeria by beating Togo 2-0, with Albert Kangwanda scoring early before Eliya Mandanji sealed the victory in stoppage time.
Algeria lead with four points, with Zambia and Togo on three and Burundi on one.
Matchday 2 results: Burundi 2-2 Algeria; Zambia 2-0 Togo.
Next fixtures: Algeria v Togo; Zambia v Burundi — November.
Group J: Senegal and Mozambique level at summit
Senegal secured their first victory under Patrick Vieira with a 1-0 win away to Ethiopia.
Ibrahim Mbaye scored after 11 minutes from Nicolas Jackson's pass as the Lions of Teranga followed their opening 1-1 draw against Mozambique with three points.
Mozambique were far more emphatic, beating Sudan 4-1 after Witi opened the scoring and Chamito struck twice, with Guima also on target.
Senegal and Mozambique are level on four points, although Mozambique have the superior goal difference. Sudan have three points, while Ethiopia remain without a point.
Matchday 2 results: Ethiopia 0-1 Senegal; Mozambique 4-1 Sudan.
Next fixtures: Mozambique v Ethiopia; Senegal v Sudan — November.
Group K: Rwanda and Mali remain perfect
Rwanda and Mali have opened a clear advantage at the top of Group K after both recorded their second successive victories.
Rwanda recovered from falling behind to beat Cape Verde 2-1, with Claude Niyomugabo equalising before Elie Iradukunda Tatou completed the turnaround early in the second half.
Mali had to wait until the 79th minute to overcome Liberia, with Ange Martial Tia scoring the only goal from Kamory Doumbia's pass.
Rwanda and Mali both have six points and identical goal differences, while Cape Verde and Liberia remain without a point.
Matchday 2 results: Cape Verde 1-2 Rwanda; Liberia 0-1 Mali.
Next fixtures: Cape Verde v Liberia; Mali v Rwanda — November.
Group L: Guinea-Bissau take control after stunning Nigeria
Guinea-Bissau produced one of the standout results of Matchday Two by beating Nigeria 3-0 to maintain their perfect start.
Franculino opened the scoring after 15 minutes, Mama Baldé doubled the advantage in the second half and Álvaro Djaló completed the victory in stoppage time.
Madagascar and co-hosts Tanzania drew 1-1 in the group's other game, with Cyprian Kachewele putting Tanzania ahead before Nicolas Fontaine equalised five minutes after half-time.
Guinea-Bissau lead with six points and have scored five goals without conceding, while Nigeria have three. Tanzania and Madagascar have one point each, although Tanzania are already guaranteed their place at the finals as co-hosts.
Matchday 2 results: Guinea-Bissau 3-0 Nigeria; Madagascar 1-1 Tanzania.
Next fixtures: Madagascar v Guinea-Bissau; Nigeria v Tanzania — November.