The seedings for Tuesday’s 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying draw have officially been confirmed, with 48 nations divided into four pots ahead of the group-stage draw in Cairo.
The qualification campaign will feature 12 groups of four teams, with the top two nations from each group advancing to the 24-team tournament finals, scheduled to take place from June 10 to July 17 next year.
However, the qualification process carries an unusual twist due to the presence of three co-host nations — Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda — who are guaranteed places at the finals but will still compete in the qualifiers.
CAF has confirmed that the three co-hosts must each be placed in separate groups during Tuesday’s draw.
In the nine groups without a co-host nation, the top two teams will qualify directly for the tournament. In the three groups containing Kenya, Tanzania or Uganda, only the highest-placed team that is not a co-host will secure qualification.
The draw seedings have been determined using the latest FIFA world rankings released on April 1.
Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt, Ivory Coast, Tunisia, Cameroon, DR Congo, Mali, South Africa, Burkina Faso
Cape Verde, Ghana, Guinea, Gabon, Uganda, Angola, Benin, Zambia, Mozambique, Madagascar, Equatorial Guinea, Comoros
Kenya, Libya, Tanzania, Niger, Mauritania, Gambia, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Namibia, Togo, Malawi, Rwanda
Zimbabwe, Guinea Bissau, Congo, Central African Republic, Liberia, Burundi, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Botswana, South Sudan, Eritrea, Somalia
The draw procedure will begin with the allocation of Level 4 teams before progressing upward to the top seeds in Level 1, meaning Africa’s biggest football nations will have to wait until the final stages to discover their opponents.
The qualification matches will be played across three international windows:
Each nation will play two qualifying matches during every window as the race for a place at AFCON 2027 intensifies.
