TotalEnergies CAF AFCON 2027 qualifying pots revealed ahead of Cairo draw

The road to the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations PAMOJA 2027 will take a major step forward on Tuesday when the qualification draw is held in Cairo.

CAF has confirmed the four draw pots for the qualifiers, with 48 nations set to discover their group-stage opponents as the race for places at the tournament begins to take shape.

The draw will be staged at the headquarters of the Egyptian Football Association from 15:00 local time, 12:00 GMT, and will be broadcast live on CAF TV.

The next edition of the Africa Cup of Nations will be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda from 19 June to 17 July 2027.

Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt, Côte d’Ivoire, Tunisia, Cameroon, DR Congo, Mali, South Africa and Burkina Faso have been placed in Pot 1, making them the top seeds for the draw.

Their presence raises the possibility of several difficult groups, particularly with strong second-pot sides such as Cape Verde, Ghana, Guinea, Gabon, Uganda, Angola, Benin and Zambia also waiting to learn their opponents.

Mozambique, Madagascar, Equatorial Guinea and Comoros complete Pot 2, giving the draw further balance and increasing the prospect of competitive groups across the qualifying campaign.

Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda are already guaranteed places at the finals as co-hosts, but they will still take part in the qualifiers.

Because of their automatic qualification, only one additional team will qualify from any group containing one of the three host nations. In the remaining groups, the top two teams will qualify for the finals.

Pot 3 features Kenya, Libya, Tanzania, Niger, Mauritania, The Gambia, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Namibia, Togo, Malawi and Rwanda.

Zimbabwe, Guinea-Bissau, Congo, Central African Republic, Liberia, Burundi, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Botswana, South Sudan, Eritrea and Somalia have been placed in Pot 4.

South Sudan, Burundi, Somalia, Lesotho, Eritrea and Ethiopia came through the preliminary round to join the 42 highest-ranked teams in the group stage.

The 48 teams will be drawn into 12 groups, with the qualifying campaign to be played across three international windows.

The opening two matchdays are scheduled for the FIFA window from 21 September to 6 October 2026, before Matchdays 3 and 4 take place from 9 to 17 November 2026.

The final two rounds of matches will be played from 22 to 30 March 2027, when the line-up for the tournament is expected to be completed.

Several traditional heavyweights will enter the qualifiers as favourites, but recent AFCON campaigns have shown that the gap between established powers and emerging nations continues to narrow.

Central African Republic, Eritrea, Somalia and South Sudan will be among the teams hoping to reach the continental finals for the first time, while others will see the qualifiers as a chance to return to Africa’s biggest football stage.

With home-and-away matches spread over several months, away points, goal difference and consistency are expected to be decisive.

The draw will now determine the first major shape of the journey to PAMOJA 2027, as Africa’s national teams begin the battle for a place at the continent’s showpiece tournament.

AFCON 2027 qualifying draw pots

Pot 1: Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt, Côte d’Ivoire, Tunisia, Cameroon, DR Congo, Mali, South Africa, Burkina Faso

Pot 2: Cape Verde, Ghana, Guinea, Gabon, Uganda, Angola, Benin, Zambia, Mozambique, Madagascar, Equatorial Guinea, Comoros

Pot 3: Kenya, Libya, Tanzania, Niger, Mauritania, The Gambia, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Namibia, Togo, Malawi, Rwanda

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