African qualifiers for the 26 World Cup kicked off on 15 November. Nine African teams will participate in the final phase of the World Cup 26, one will go to the play-off tournament.
As matches start, discover dates, qualifying format and the number of tickets to the next FIFA World Cup and the FIFA Play-Off Tournament in Africa.
Dates
The Africa Zone (CAF) qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 26 begin on 15 November 2023 and end in November 2025.
Tickets to FIFA World Cup 26
Nine African teams are guaranteed to compete in the World Cup. Another will participate in the FIFA Play-off Tournament.
Who qualifies for the FIFA World Cup 26?
Find out the qualification process through which the 48 participating teams at the FIFA World Cup 26™ will be selected.
How qualifying works
The African qualifiers will be played across two rounds. The first will be contested in the form of a group stage, with eight groups of six teams and one group of five, following Eritrea’s withdrawal. Each team will play two matches, home and away, against each of their opponents. The top finisher in each of the nine groups will qualify for World Cup 26.
The second round will pit the four best runners-up in two one-off semi-finals, followed by a final. The winner of this second round will participate in the FIFA Play-off Tournament.
First-round groups
GROUP A
Egypt
Burkina Faso
Guinea-Bissau
Sierra Leone
Ethiopia
Djibouti
GROUP B
Senegal
Congo DR
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
Congo
Tanzania
Niger
GROUP F
Côte d’Ivoire
Gabon
Kenya
The Gambia
Burundi
Seychelles
GROUP G
Algeria
Guinea
Uganda
Mozambique
Botswana
Somalia
GROUP H
Tunisia
Equatorial Guinea
Namibia
Malawi
Liberia
Sao Tome e Principe
GROUP I
Mali
Ghana
Madagascar
Central African Republic
Comoros
Chad
The schedule
15-21 November, 2023: 1st and 2nd matchdays
3-11 June, 2024: 3rd and 4th matchdays
17-25 March, 2025: 5th and 6th matchdays
1-9 September, 2025: 7th and 8th matchdays
6-14 October, 2025: 9th and 10th matchdays
10-18 November, 2025: CAF play-off tournament
FIFA Play-Off Tournament
The FIFA Play-Off Tournament will see six sides fight it out for the final two places at the 23rd FIFA World Cup. It will involve two teams from Concacaf and one team apiece from the AFC, CAF, CONMEBOL and OFC.
The four lowest-ranked nations will meet in bracket semi-finals. The two highest-ranked teams will go directly into the finals. The winners of the two bracket finals will reach the FIFA World Cup 26.
See where the CAF nations sit in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking
FIFA World Cup appearances
8 – Cameroon
6 – Morocco
6 – Nigeria
6 – Tunisia
4 – Ghana
4 – Algeria
3 – Senegal
3 – Egypt
3 – South Africa
3 – Côte d’Ivoire
1 – DR Congo (under the banner of Zaire)
1 – Angola
1 – Togo
SOURCE: FIFAPLUS
