The 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign begins on Thursday, with round one fixtures spread across three days between 24 and 26 September.
Forty-eight nations across 12 groups will be in action, including all three tournament co-hosts, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, who are already qualified but still play the group stage as competitive preparation.
All times below are South African Standard Time (SAST).
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Thursday, 24 September
Namibia vs Congo (15:00)
DR Congo vs Equatorial Guinea (18:00)
Mauritania vs Central African Republic (18:00)
Libya vs Botswana (18:00)
Côte d’Ivoire vs Ghana (21:00)
Sierra Leone vs Zimbabwe (21:00)
Cameroon vs Comoros (21:00)
Tunisia vs Uganda (21:00)
The standout fixture of the whole round closes out the day, as AFCON 2023 champions Côte d’Ivoire host four-time winners Ghana in a genuine West African heavyweight clash.
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Friday, 25 September
Tanzania vs Guinea-Bissau (15:00)
Niger vs Lesotho (17:00)
Malawi vs South Sudan (18:00)
Gambia vs Somalia (18:00)
Togo vs Burundi (18:00)
Sudan vs Ethiopia (18:00)
Rwanda vs Liberia (18:00)
Nigeria vs Madagascar (18:00)
Morocco vs Gabon (21:00)
Egypt vs Angola (21:00)
Burkina Faso vs Benin (21:00)
Algeria vs Zambia (21:00)
Senegal vs Mozambique (21:00)
Mali vs Cape Verde (21:00)
The busiest day of the round features record seven-time champions Egypt hosting Angola in Cairo, along with Morocco’s opener against Gabon and Algeria’s clash with Zambia.
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Saturday, 26 September
South Africa vs Guinea (15:00)
Kenya vs Eritrea (15:00)
Bafana Bafana’s qualifying campaign under new head coach Pitso Mosimane begins at home against Guinea, in a group where co-hosts Kenya’s automatic qualification means only one of South Africa, Guinea or Eritrea will progress to the finals.
Round two of qualifying follows between 28 September and 6 October, before the campaign resumes in November and concludes with the final matchdays in March 2027.
Photo: Julian Finney – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images
