By Macdella Eyong Bessong
The Indomitable Lions of Cameroon head into the qualifying campaign of the TotalEnergies AFCON PAMOJA 2027 Qualifiers, drawn against an already familiar Comoros, Namibia and Congo Brazzaville, following draw conducted at the Egyptian Football Association headquarters in Cairo this Tuesday, May 19.
Cameroon, five time African champion, is up against a Namibian side who have been to the AFCON only four times. In their 2023 appearance, the “Brave Warriors” made history by recording their first-ever tournament win (a 1-0 against Tunisia) and reaching the Round of 16 for the first time. They failed to reach the finals in Morocco, outsmarted by Cameroon and Mozambique in thesame group.
Another Group F opponent is Comoros, two times AFCON participants(2023, 2025) having met Cameroon in the Round of 16 back in 2021 when the latter hosted, they will be looking at a third appearance.
Congo Brazzaville are seven times AFCON participants. Their last appearance dates back to 2015 in which they reach the quarterfinals. They are one time champions(1972)
The lions will be looking forward to a 23rd appearance as they remain one of the most consistent African nation and the second most decorated only after Egypt.
All 48 participating teams now know their opponents for the qualifiers of Africa’s biggest showpiece. Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda are already guaranteed places at the finals as co-hosts. However, they still have to participate in the qualifiers and have been drawn in Group D, L and H respectively.
The participants have been paired in 12 groups of four each and In groups containing a host nation, only one non-host team progresses to the final. For every other group, the top two teams qualifies.
The 48 teams included 42 highest-ranked nations who automatically get the group stage of the qualifiers and 6 winners from the preliminary round.
This will be the first edition co-hosted by three countries: Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, marking the return of the tournament to East Africa for the first time in 51 years.
CAF brought in African football icons to assist in conducting the draw. They include;
– Max-Alain Gradel- Côte d’Ivoire, two-time AFCON winner
– William Troost-Ekong – Nigeria, former Super Eagles captain
– Essam El Hadary – Egypt, legendary goalkeeper
– Trésor Mputu- DR Congo
The first two qualifying matches are scheduled between 21 September to 6 October 2026, before Matchdays 3 and 4 from November 9 to 17 2026.
The final two rounds of matches will be played from 22 to 30 March 2027.
Meanwhile, the finals are set for 19 June to 17 July 2027, with CAF to announce which host nation stages each game.
Full AFCON 2027 Qualifiers Draw
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
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