Kenya Sport

CAF Confederation Cup Draw Offers Giants Favourable Pathways

The road to the 2026–2027 CAF Confederation Cup began to take shape in Cairo on Thursday, as CAF mapped out two preliminary rounds that look, on paper at least, kind to the continent’s heavyweights.

At headquarters in the Egyptian capital, officials pulled out 56 names, but eight of them already knew they would not be getting their hands dirty in September.

Big Guns Bide Their Time

Al Ahly of Egypt, Azam of Tanzania, USM Alger and CR Belouizdad of Algeria, Raja and AS FAR of Morocco, Maniema Union of DR Congo, and Kaizer Chiefs of South Africa all earned a bye into the second preliminary round thanks to their continental ranking.

That leaves 48 clubs to scrap through 24 two-legged ties in the first preliminary round, all for the right to join the privileged eight and complete a 32-team second stage.

For the giants, the draw brought more intrigue than jeopardy.

Al Ahly, Africa’s most decorated club, will open their Confederation Cup campaign against the winner of Mogadishu City of Somalia v Kitara of Uganda. It is the kind of pairing that underlines the gulf in pedigree, yet it also throws a spotlight on emerging sides chasing a career-defining upset.

Raja of Morocco will also wait and watch. Their opponent will come from El Kanemi Warriors of Nigeria v Oudjeb of Benin, a tie that promises a bruising West African battle before the reward of a glamour clash with the Casablanca club.

AS FAR, the other Moroccan powerhouse in the exempt group, will face the winner between ASBSI of Chad and Kokoroko of Ivory Coast. Whoever emerges from that tie steps straight into a meeting with one of the continent’s most seasoned campaigners.

USM Alger, the defending champions after edging Zamalek of Egypt on penalties in last season’s final, begin their title defence against the qualifier from Panthers of Ethiopia v ASPAC of Benin. CR Belouizdad, Algeria’s other seeded side, will meet the winner of Douanes of Burkina Faso v Hafia Conakry of Guinea, a fixture that carries echoes of old West African rivalries.

Azam of Tanzania, another of the eight seeded clubs, will face the winner of ZED of Egypt v Ittihad Djibouti, while Maniema Union of DR Congo enter against the victor of University of Namibia (UNAM) v Kabuscorp de Palanca of Angola. Kaizer Chiefs, still chasing a first continental crown of this era, will meet whoever emerges from Red Arrows of Zambia v FC Rouge of Congo.

The stage is set: the giants wait; the challengers go to work.

First Preliminary Round: Long Road, Short Margin for Error

From 4 to 6 September, the Confederation Cup begins in earnest. The first legs of the first preliminary round will be played across the continent, with return fixtures from 11 to 13 September.

The draw has scattered compelling subplots everywhere.

Mogadishu City of Somalia v Kitara of Uganda feeds directly into Al Ahly’s path. ZED of Egypt v Ittihad Djibouti leads to Azam. Al Hilal Al Sahel of Sudan v Welwalo Adigrat of Ethiopia, and KMKM of Zanzibar v Al Ahly Tripoli of Libya, are locked together in a mini-bracket, their two winners set to collide in the second round.

Al Ahly Madani of Sudan face Tusker of Kenya, while Al Ghazala Wau of South Sudan host Singida Black Stars of Tanzania. The winners of those two ties will meet each other in the next phase, a neat East–Central African corridor with a group-stage place in sight.

Panthers of Ethiopia v ASPAC of Benin feeds into USM Alger’s defence of their crown. ASBSI of Chad v Kokoroko of Ivory Coast determines who challenges AS FAR. Douanes of Burkina Faso v Hafia Conakry of Guinea produces CR Belouizdad’s opponent. El Kanemi Warriors of Nigeria v Oudjeb of Benin sets up Raja’s first hurdle.

There is no shortage of heavyweight names even at this early stage. Shooting Stars of Nigeria take on CS Sfaxien of Tunisia in one of the standout ties of the round, with the winner then facing whoever comes through FC Amadou Diallo of Ivory Coast v East End Lions of Sierra Leone.

Mostakbal Gabes of Tunisia meet Diambars of Senegal, with the winner to face either Vitesse of Burkina Faso or Real Bamako of Mali. Diarra of Mali v Nations of Ghana feeds into a tie against the winner of AS Sam of Niger v ASKO Kara of Togo, a classic West African qualifying gauntlet.

Further down the bracket, University of Namibia (UNAM) v Kabuscorp de Palanca of Angola leads to Maniema Union. Red Arrows of Zambia v FC Rouge of Congo leads to Kaizer Chiefs. Durban City of South Africa v Rukinzo of Burundi and Port Louis 2000 of Mauritius v Jwaneng Galaxy of Botswana are paired, their winners due to collide in the second preliminary round.

Panthere Sportive (Central Africa) v Rayon Sport of Rwanda and Atomique du Niger v Black Bulls of Mozambique are linked, with their winners set to face each other. DC Virunga of DR Congo v Bazar Brothers of Seychelles and Green Mamba of Eswatini v Primeiro de Agosto of Angola form another mini-section, their victors meeting in the next phase.

Every tie is two legs, no safety net. One bad night, and the dream ends in September.

Second Preliminary Round: Giants Enter, Pressure Rises

The second preliminary round, where the eight seeded clubs join, will be played with first legs between 16 and 18 October and return legs from 23 to 25 October.

The bracket is already mapped out:

  • Winner of Mogadishu City v Kitara v Al Ahly of Egypt.
  • Winner of ZED v Ittihad Djibouti v Azam of Tanzania.
  • Winner of Al Hilal Al Sahel v Welwalo Adigrat v winner of KMKM v Al Ahly Tripoli.
  • Winner of Al Ahly Madani v Tusker v winner of Al Ghazala Wau v Singida Black Stars.
  • Winner of Panthers v ASPAC v USM Alger of Algeria.
  • Winner of ASBSI v Kokoroko v AS FAR of Morocco.
  • Winner of Douanes v Hafia Conakry v CR Belouizdad of Algeria.
  • Winner of El Kanemi Warriors v Oudjeb v Raja of Morocco.
  • Winner of FC Amadou Diallo v East End Lions v winner of Shooting Stars v CS Sfaxien.
  • Winner of Mostakbal Gabes v Diambars v winner of Vitesse v Real Bamako.
  • Winner of Diarra v Nations v winner of AS Sam v ASKO Kara.
  • Winner of University of Namibia v Kabuscorp v Maniema Union of DR Congo.
  • Winner of Red Arrows v FC Rouge v Kaizer Chiefs of South Africa.
  • Winner of Durban City v Rukinzo v winner of Port Louis 2000 v Jwaneng Galaxy.
  • Winner of Panthere Sportive v Rayon Sport v winner of Atomique du Niger v Black Bulls.
  • Winner of DC Virunga v Bazar Brothers v winner of Green Mamba v Primeiro de Agosto.

When those 32 teams are cut to 16, the group stage awaits.

Calendar Set, Stakes Clear

CAF has laid out a precise timetable. After the preliminary rounds, the group stage will run as follows:

  • Matchday one: 27–29 November 2026
  • Matchday two: 4–6 December 2026
  • Matchday three: 18–20 December 2026
  • Matchday four: 8–10 January 2027
  • Matchday five: 15–17 January 2027
  • Matchday six: 22–24 January 2027

The knockout rounds then take over:

  • Quarter-finals: first legs 26–28 February 2027, return legs 5–7 March 2027
  • Semi-finals: first legs 9–11 April 2027, return legs 16–18 April 2027
  • Final: to be played between 9 and 31 May 2027, with the exact date still to be confirmed

Beyond prestige and a place in African club history, the financial incentives are clear. The Confederation Cup winner will receive 4 million dollars in prize money. Clubs eliminated in the preliminary rounds are guaranteed a solidarity payment of 100,000 dollars, part of CAF’s ongoing policy to support participating sides and ease the burden of continental travel.

USM Alger hold the trophy for now. Al Ahly, Raja, AS FAR, CR Belouizdad, Kaizer Chiefs and the rest of the seeded pack are plotting to take it from them.

The draw in Cairo has done its work. From here, it is up to 56 squads, scattered from Eswatini to Morocco, from Somalia to Angola, to decide who is still standing when May 2027 finally arrives.

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