AFCON 2027 Qualifiers Set to Begin as 48 Teams Chase 24 Places

Qualification for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations is scheduled to begin on Thursday, starting a campaign in which 48 national teams will compete for 24 places at the finals.

The tournament will be staged in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania from June 19 to July 17, 2027. The three host nations have automatically qualified, with the 36th edition of the competition planned across 10 venues in East Africa.

Qualifying format

The qualifying competition is divided into 12 groups and will run over six rounds through March of the following year. Matches are scheduled to take place in a home-and-away format, with each team playing six games.

In groups that include Kenya, Uganda or Tanzania, the highest-ranked team apart from the host will qualify. In the other groups, the top two teams will advance to the finals.

The qualifying draw was held in Cairo, Egypt, in May. The finals will return to East Africa after a period of 51 years, according to the supplied tournament background.

The scheduled venues are in Dar-es-Salaam, Arusha and Zanzibar in Tanzania; Nairobi in Kenya; and Hoima, Kampala and Lira in Uganda.

Senegal-Morocco dispute remains unresolved

The buildup to the qualifying campaign is also being shaped by an unresolved dispute over the previous Africa Cup of Nations final.

Senegal defeated Morocco 1-0 on January 18, with Pape Gueye scoring in extra time. The Confederation of African Football later stripped Senegal of the title and awarded it to Morocco after reviewing an incident involving a late penalty.

The controversy followed a penalty awarded to Morocco in added time. Senegalese players temporarily left the field in protest, while the penalty was eventually missed after a lengthy delay. Senegal has appealed CAF’s decision, and the Court of Arbitration for Sport is scheduled to hear the case on October 8. The year for that hearing was not specified in the supplied information.

Key player absences

Several prominent players will not be available for the opening matches. Morocco’s Achraf Hakimi is suspended for the team’s first two games, while Ismael Saibari is due to miss three matches because of suspensions linked to unsporting behaviour during the previous final.

Senegal will be without Sadio Mane for its match against Mozambique. Coach Patrick Vieira described Mane’s absence as being caused by a “physical issue.”

Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen will miss the opening qualifiers against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau while recovering from a muscle problem sustained during his time with Galatasaray.

Gabon will also be without Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who has quit international duty.

Egypt’s squad includes Mohamed Salah, while other players identified among those to watch include Brahim Diaz, Ayyoub Bouaddi, Ademola Lookman, Samuel Chukwueze, Mohammed Kudus, Ibrahim Mbaye and Iliman Ndiaye.

The qualifying campaign is scheduled to be played during FIFA international windows. Selected matches will receive live coverage from Al Jazeera Sport.