CAF will conduct the 2027 AFCON qualifiers draw on Tuesday, starting the road to the tournament with preliminary round fixtures

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) will hold the draw for the preliminary round of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers on Tuesday, officially kicking off the qualification campaign for the tournament.

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CAF released the official pots for the preliminary stage on Monday, providing the framework for the opening fixtures.

Pot 1 features Lesotho, Burundi, Ethiopia, Eswatini, South Sudan, and Mauritius, while Pot 2 includes Chad, São Tomé & Príncipe, Djibouti, Somalia, Seychelles, and Eritrea.

Under the draw format, each team from Pot 1 will be paired against a team from Pot 2, with the first leg hosted by the lower-ranked nation.

The fixtures will be decided over two legs, and the six winners from the preliminary round will progress to the group stage draw.

The advancing teams will join Africa’s top 42-ranked nations in the bid to secure a place at the continent’s premier football tournament.

CAF has yet to confirm the host nation for the 35th edition of AFCON in 2027.

Top-ranked nations, including Nigeria, will bypass the preliminary round and enter directly into the group stage.

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Nigeria’s Super Eagles, currently competing in the 2025 AFCON in Morocco, have won all five matches to reach the semi-finals against hosts Morocco on Wednesday.