Road to Egypt Mapped Out Following TotalEnergies CAF U-23 Afcon 2027 Qualifiers Draw

**CAF Announces Qualifying Schedule for 2027 U‑23 Africa Cup of Nations**

*CAIRO, Egypt – 28 August 2026* – The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has released the full draw and schedule for the qualifying phase of the 2027 TotalEnergies CAF Under‑23 Africa Cup of Nations (U‑23 AFCON), which will be hosted by Egypt. The competition will serve as part of Africa’s qualification pathway for the men’s football tournament at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

**Draw and Participants**

The draw took place at CAF’s headquarters in Cairo on Tuesday, 27 August 2026. Former Côte d’Ivoire international Abdoulaye Meité and former Egypt goalkeeper Nader El‑Sayed assisted CAF officials in conducting the draw. A total of 42 African nations entered the qualifiers, with Egypt automatically qualified as host for the eight‑team final tournament.

**Qualifying Format**

The qualification process consists of three knockout rounds played on a home‑and‑away basis:

* **First Round** – 28 teams will contest 14 two‑legged ties. The first legs are scheduled for 20 September 2026, with the return matches on 6 October 2026. Notable fixtures include Tunisia versus Benin, Kenya versus Tanzania, Sierra Leone versus Burkina Faso, Mauritania versus DR Congo, and São Tomé and Príncipe versus Equatorial Guinea.

* **Second Round** – The 14 First‑Round winners will join 14 teams that received byes based on their performances in the previous three editions of the tournament. Matches in this round will be played on 9 November 2026 (first leg) and 17 November 2026 (second leg). Among the pairings announced: Zambia will face the winner of Sierra Leone/Burkina Faso; Nigeria will await the winner of Mauritania/DR Congo; Ghana will meet the winner of Togo/Libya; Côte d’Ivoire will play the winner of the Kenya/Tanzania tie; Morocco will face either Ethiopia or Uganda; Cameroon will meet the winner of Rwanda/Sudan; and South Africa will play either Comoros or Madagascar. Additional teams entering at this stage include Niger, Gabon, Senegal, Congo, Guinea, Algeria and Mali.

* **Third Round** – The 14 Second‑Round victors will be reduced to seven through two‑legged ties. The first legs are set for 22 March 2027, with the return fixtures on 30 March 2027. The seven aggregate winners will join Egypt in the final tournament.

**Olympic Implications**

The 2027 U‑23 AFCON will double as a qualifying tournament for the 2028 Olympic men’s football competition. Africa has a notable Olympic football pedigree: Nigeria won gold in Atlanta 1996 and secured silver in Beijing 2008 and bronze in Rio 2016; Cameroon captured gold in Sydney 2000; and Ghana earned bronze in Barcelona 1992, becoming the first African nation to win an Olympic football medal.

**Further Information**

Details of the full match schedule and additional tournament information are available on CAF’s official website (www.cafonline.com). Media inquiries may be directed to CAF’s Communication Department.

Article and image source: allafrica.com