AFCON 2027: CAF Reveals Qualifiers Dates

AFCON 2027: CAF Reveals Qualifiers Dates

 Sampson Adedeji

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially announced the dates for the qualifiers for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, BSNSports.com.ng reports.

According to CAF, the qualifying campaign will be conducted later in 2026, with some teams set to feature in a preliminary round scheduled for March. 

However, teams exempted from the preliminary phase, including the Leopards, will enter the competition directly at the group stage.

The group-stage fixtures for the AFCON 2027 qualifiers have been scheduled as follows:

Matchdays 1 & 2: September 21–30, 2026

Matchdays 3 & 4: October 1–6, 2026

Matchdays 5 & 6: November 9–17, 2026

CAF also reiterated that the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations will be jointly hosted by Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, marking the first time the tournament will be staged across three countries in East Africa. 

The competition is scheduled to kick off in June 2027.

Further details regarding the draw and full fixture list are expected to be communicated by CAF in due course.