Teams eagerly await qualification draw for TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations PAMOJA 2027

The road to the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) PAMOJA 2027 is set to deliver another thrilling qualification campaign as 48 nations enter the group stage of the preliminaries, with several heavyweight teams and emerging football nations all dreaming of a place at the main table ahead of the draw in Cairo on Tuesday, 19 May.

The qualification draw will take place at the headquarters of the Egyptian Football Association from 15h00 local time (12h00 GMT) and will be live on CAF TV.

The TotalEnergies CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027 will be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and will be played from 19 June-17 July 2027.

The qualification process has already begun with a preliminary round involving the lowest-ranked sides on the continent. Those ties, played over two legs on a home-and-away basis, produced dramatic results as teams battled to keep their hopes alive of reaching the finals.

South Sudan, Burundi, Somalia, Lesotho, Eritrea and Ethiopia emerged victorious from that round and join the 42 top-ranked sides on the continent in the group stages.   

The 48 teams will be divided into 12 groups, with the top two sides in each pool qualifying automatically for the finals. Co-hosts Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania are guaranteed places at the tournament regardless of their qualification results, meaning only one other team will emerge from their pools.

The qualifiers have been broken down into three parts, each containing two match days.

The first two games will be played in the FIFA International Window from 21 September-6 October 2026. Matchdays 3 & 4 will be played 9-17 November 2026 and the final Matchdays 5 & 6 from 22-30 March 2027.

Traditional African powerhouses of the continent are all expected to be among the strongest contenders, but as we have seen in recent editions, there are usually several sides who can spring a surprise.

Central African Republic, Chad, Eritrea, Somalia and South Sudan are all seeking to qualify for the continent finals for the first time.

The qualification campaign is expected to feature several closely balanced groups where even small details could prove decisive. With teams playing home-and-away fixtures across multiple international windows, away results and goal difference may ultimately determine which nations progress.

So-called ‘smaller’ football nations will hope to cause upsets against more established opposition and continue their football development on the continental stage.

The expansion and growing competitiveness of African football means there are fewer easy fixtures than ever before. Every point will matter as teams chase one of the coveted places at the finals.

The following 48 teams will take part in the qualifiers:
Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Comoros, Congo, DR Congo, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe