A record nine teams have qualified for the 2026 World Cup, with the possibility of as many as 10 as the 54 CAF member nations begin their bid to qualify for the North American-based tournament. be.
Technically they are already down to 53rd place since Eritrea declined to qualify, but this article will explain the schedule, standings, etc. in detail.
[ MORE: How will 48-team 2026 World Cup work? ]
CAF includes dozens of Premier League players such as Manchester United’s Andre Onana, West Ham’s Mohamed Kudus and Tottenham’s Yves Bissouma, as well as a trio of stars from Ivory Coast’s Nottingham Forest. star players are gathering.
Competition is fierce, with only one spot guaranteed for Mali and Ghana (Group I), Nigeria and South Africa (Group C), and Senegal and Democratic Republic of Congo (Group B).
Here’s everything you need to know for the Africa World Cup Qualifiers.
Africa (CAF) Premier League players who qualified for the 2026 World Cup
Algeria: Rayan Ait Nouri (Wolves), Said Benrahma (West Ham)
Benin: Khalid Junkpata (Everton)
Burkina Faso: Bertrand Traore (Aston Villa), Dango Ouattara (Bournemouth)
Cameroon: Andre Onana (Manchester United), Brian Mbeumo (Brentford), Carlos Baleva (Brighton)
Democratic Republic of the Congo representative: Yoann Wissa (Brentford)
Egypt: Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Mohamed Elneny (Arsenal)
Equatorial Guinea: Basilio Rieno (Burnley)
Gabon: Mario Lemina (Wolves)
Ghana: Tariq Lamptey (Brighton), Mohamed Kudus (West Ham), Thomas Partey (Arsenal), Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace), Antoine Semenyo (Bournemouth), Geoff Schlupp (Crystal Palace).
Ivory Coast: Serge Aurier (Nottingham Forest), Willy Boly (Nottingham Forest), Ibrahim Sangare (Nottingham Forest), Hamed Traore (Bournemouth), Simon Adingra (Brighton), Jean-Philippe Gbamin (Everton) ), Amad Diallo (Manchester United), Maxwell Cornet (West Ham)
Mali: Yves Bissouma (Tottenham), Cheick Doucoure (Crystal Palace), Ismaila Koulibaly (Sheffield United), Boubacar Traore (Wolves)
Morocco: Nayef Agerud (West Ham), Sofian Amrabat (Manchester United), Anas Zarouly (Burnley)
Nigeria: Calvin Bassey (Fulham), Alex Iwobi (Fulham), Frank Onyeka (Brentford), Emmanuel Dennis (Nottingham Forest)
Senegal: Moussa Niahate (Nottingham Forest), Idrissa Gana Gueye (Everton), Cheikou Kouyate (Nottingham Forest), Papu Sarr (Tottenham), Nicholas Jackson (Chelsea)
South Africa: Lyle Foster (Burnley)
Tunisia: Hannibal Meybry (Manchester United), Anis Ben Slimane (Sheffield United), Samy Shushan (Brighton)
Zimbabwe: Admiral Muskwe (Luton Town)
Africa (CAF) 2026 World Cup Qualifying Format
- 1st round (November 15, 2023 – October 14, 2025): 54 teams in 9 groups, The top teams from each group qualify for the World Cup.the top four runners-up will advance to the playoff semi-finals
- 2nd round (November 10-18, 2025): Stage semi-finals and finals between the top four players in the group. The winner will play an inter-federation play-off.
Africa (CAF) World Cup Qualification Schedule — 1st round fixtures, results
Section 1
Wednesday, November 15th
Equatorial Guinea vs. Namibia — 8 a.m. ET
Rwanda vs. Zimbabwe — 8 a.m. ET
DR Congo vs. Mauritania — 11 a.m. ET
Ethiopia vs. Sierra Leone — 2:00 p.m. ET
Thursday, November 16th
Burundi vs. Gambia — 8 a.m. ET
Botswana vs. Mozambique — 8 a.m. ET
Nigeria vs. Lesotho — 11 a.m. ET
Sudan vs. Togo — 11 a.m. ET
Gabon vs. Kenya — 11 a.m. ET
Algeria vs. Somalia — 11 a.m. ET
Egypt vs. Djibouti — 11 a.m. ET
Morocco vs Eritrea — cancel
Cape Verde vs. Angola — 2:00 p.m. ET
Friday, November 17th
Eswatini vs. Libya — 8 a.m. ET
Comoros vs. Central African Republic — 8 a.m. ET
Guinea vs. Uganda — 8 a.m. ET
Liberia vs. Malawi — 11 a.m. ET
Zambia vs. Republic of Congo — 11 a.m. ET
Ghana vs. Madagascar — 11 a.m. ET
Mali vs. Chad — 2:00 p.m. ET
Burkina Faso vs. Guinea-Bissau — 2:00 p.m. ET
Tunisia vs. Sao Tome and Principe — 2:00 p.m. ET
Ivory Coast vs. Seychelles — 2:00 p.m. ET
Cameroon vs. Mauritius — 2:00 p.m. ET
Saturday, November 18th
South Africa vs. Benin — 8 a.m. ET
Niger vs. Tanzania — 11 a.m. ET
Senegal vs. South Sudan — 2:00 p.m. ET
Section 2
Sunday, November 19th
Zimbabwe vs. Nigeria — 8 a.m. ET
Burundi vs. Gabon — 8 a.m. ET
Mozambique vs. Algeria — 8 a.m. ET
Sudan vs. Democratic Republic of the Congo — 11 a.m. ET
Sierra Leone vs. Egypt — 11 a.m. ET
Monday, November 20th
Djibouti vs. Guinea-Bissau — 8 a.m. ET
Gambia vs. Ivory Coast — 11 a.m. ET
Eritrea vs Republic of Congo — cancel
Liberia vs. Equatorial Guinea — 11 a.m. ET
Seychelles vs. Kenya — 2:00 p.m. ET
Mali vs. Central African Republic — 2:00 p.m. ET
Chad vs. Madagascar — 2:00 p.m. ET
Tuesday, November 21st
Lesotho vs. Benin — 8 a.m. ET
Africa (CAF) 2026 World Cup Qualifiers — Standings/Standings
Group A
- Burkina Faso
- Djibouti
- Egypt
- ethiopia
- Guinea-Bissau
- Sierra Leone
Group B
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- mauritania
- senegal
- South Sudan
- sudan
- Take out
Group C
- Benin
- lesotho
- Nigeria
- Rwanda
- South Africa
- Zimbabwe
Group D
- Angola
- cape verde
- cameroon
- eSwatini
- libya
- mauritius
Group E
- republic of congo
- Morocco
- niger
- tanzania
- Zambia
- Eritrea — withdrew
Group F
- Burundi
- Ivory Coast
- Gabon
- gambia
- kenya
- seychelles
Group G
- algeria
- botswana
- Guinea
- Mozambique
- Somalia
- uganda
Group H
- equatorial guinea
- Liberia
- Malawi
- Namibia
- sao tome and principe
- tunisia
Group I
- central african republic
- chad
- Comoros
- ghana
- madagascar
- mali