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The qualification race for the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations PAMOJA 2027 will officially begin on Tuesday as Africa’s 48 nations prepare to discover their opponents during the draw in Cairo, Egypt.
CAF has already confirmed the four draw pots, setting the stage for what promises to be a highly competitive qualification campaign ahead of the tournament that will be hosted by Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania in 2027.
The draw, scheduled for 3:00 PM local time (12:00 GMT), will take place at the headquarters of the Egyptian Football Association and will determine the 12 qualifying groups.
Pot 1 contains Africa’s biggest football powers, with Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria, Algeria and reigning champions Côte d’Ivoire leading the list of top seeds.
Also placed among the top-ranked nations are Egypt, Tunisia, Cameroon, DR Congo, Mali, South Africa and Burkina Faso.
Pot 2 features several dangerous sides capable of causing major upsets, including Uganda, Ghana, Guinea, Gabon, Zambia and Angola.
Other nations in Pot 2 include Cape Verde, Benin, Mozambique, Madagascar, Equatorial Guinea and Comoros, adding further strength and balance to the draw.
Pot 3 includes co-hosts Kenya and Tanzania alongside Libya, Sudan, Rwanda, Namibia and Malawi.
The remaining nations have been placed in Pot 4, including Zimbabwe, Burundi, Botswana, South Sudan, Eritrea and Somalia, with many of them hoping to secure historic qualification to the continental finals.
Although Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania have already qualified automatically as hosts, the three nations will still participate in the qualifiers. CAF regulations state that only one additional team will qualify from any group containing one of the co-hosts, while the other groups will send two teams to the finals.
The qualifiers will be played between September 2026 and March 2027, with the draw now set to shape the road to PAMOJA 2027.
