The draw for the African region of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying took place during the CAF 45th Ordinary General Assembly held in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
The new qualifying format will feature fifty-four teams divided into nine groups, each consisting of six teams. These qualifiers will determine the representatives from Africa for the World Cup hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
The qualifying matches will commence with the first two matchdays taking place from November 13 to November 21, with further matches scheduled for the following year.
In this new format, the winners of each group will directly qualify for the World Cup finals. The top four runners-up from the groups will participate in a playoff to determine Africa’s representative in the inter-confederation playoff.
The inter-confederation playoff will involve six teams, with one team from each confederation except UEFA and two teams from the host region of CONCACAF. Two teams will progress from the playoff to secure their place in the finals.
Here are the groups for the CAF region of World Cup qualifying:
Group A:
Egypt
Burkina Faso
Guinea-Bissau
Sierra Leone
Ethiopia
Djibouti
Group B:
Senegal
DR Congo
Mauritania
Togo
Sudan
South Sudan
Group C:
Nigeria
South Africa
Benin
Zimbabwe
Rwanda
Lesotho
Group D:
Cameroon
Cape Verde
Angola
Libya
Eswatini
Mauritius
Group E:
Morocco
Zambia
Republic of Congo
Tanzania
Niger
Eritrea
Group F:
Ivory Coast
Gabon
Kenya
The Gambia
Burundi
Seychelles
Group G:
Algeria
Guinea
Uganda
Mozambique
Botswana
Somalia
Group H:
Tunisia
Equatorial Guinea
Namibia
Malawi
Liberia
São Tomé and Príncipe
Group I:
Mali
Ghana
Madagascar
Central African Republic
Comoros
Chad
