AFCON qualifying 2026: Africa Cup of Nations qualification format, schedule, standings, scores

AFCON is moving to summer, packing the next few months with important 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers on the international docket. MORE — USMNT upcoming fixtures, latest results The tournament proper, set for June 19-July 17 in the East African nations of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda will look to build on and rebound from a controversial final that saw Senegal beat Morocco after walking off the pitch. MORE — AFCON all-time winners, finals That decision eventually saw the trophy delivered to the Moroccans. What drama is next? Read on.... Africa Cup of Nations qualification format Fifty-four teams are involved in qualifying, with 24 scrapping in the preliminary rounds in a bid to reach the group stage. Those were held in March 2026, and the group stage begins this week. Africa Cup of Nations scores: Latest results Preliminary round Djibouti def South Sudan 4-1 over two legs Burundi def Chad 8-0 over two legs Somalia def Mauritius 0-0 (4-2 on penalties after second leg) Lesotho def Seychelles 2-1 Eritrea def Eswatini 4-1 Ethiopia def Sao Tome and Principe 4-0 Africa Cup of Nations schedule: Upcoming fixtures Thursday September 24 Ivory Coast v Ghana DR Congo v Equatorial Guinea Sierra Leone v Zimbabwe Mauritania v Central African Republic Namibia v Congo Cameroon v Comoros Libya v Botswana Tunisia v Uganda Friday September 25 Tanzania v Guinea-Bissau Gambia v Somalia Malawi v South Sudan Niger v Lesotho Nigeria v Madagascar Rwanda v Liberia Sudan v Ethiopia Togo v Burundi Algeria v Zambia Burkina Faso v Benin Egypt v Angola Mali v Cape Verde Morocco v Gabon Senegal v Mozambique Saturday September 26 Kenya v Eritrea South Africa v Guinea Monday September 28 Central African Republic v Burkina Faso Equatorial Guinea v Sierra Leone Zimbabwe v DR Congo Botswana v Tunisia Tuesday September 29 Comoros v Namibia Burundi v Algeria Ethiopia v Senegal Lesotho v Morocco Madagascar v Tanzania Mozambique v Sudan South Sudan v Egypt Cape Verde v Rwanda Ghana v Gambia Guinea-Bissau v Nigeria Uganda v Libya Zambia v Togo Benin v Mauritania Congo v Cameroon Gabon v Niger Liberia v Mali Somalia v Ivory Coast Wednesday September 30 Eritrea v South Africa Thursday October 1 Guinea v Kenya Tuesday October 6 Angola v Malawi Africa Cup of Nations group stage table: Latest standings Group A Morocco Gabon Niger Lesotho Group B Egypt Angola Malawi South Sudan Group C Ivory Coast Ghana Gambia Somalia Group D South Africa Guinea Kenya Eritrea Group E DR Congo Equatorial Guinea Sierra Leone Zimbabwe Group F Burkina Faso Benin Mauritania Central African Republic Group G Cameroon Comoros Namibia Congo Group H Tunisia Uganda Libya Botswana Group I Algeria Zambia Togo Burundi Group J Senegal Mozambique Sudan Ethiopia Group K Mali Cape Verde Rwanda Liberia Group L Nigeria Madagascar Tanzania Guinea-Bissau