PREVIEW: High stakes, fierce battles as CAF World Cup qualifiers resume

The roadworthy to North America 2026 tightens arsenic African qualifying for the FIFA World Cup resumes with a defining acceptable of fixtures that could determine legacies, rewrite histories, and extremity dreams.

The format is straightforward: 9 radical winners publication automatic tickets to Canada, Mexico, and the United States, portion the 4 champion runners-up volition combat done the CAF play-offs for a 2nd accidental via the inter-confederation playoffs.

With six points connected the enactment implicit this window, determination is small country for error. Every extremity counts, each constituent matters, and 1 gaffe could crook favourites into outsiders. Here’s a breakdown of wherever the battles stand, radical by group, arsenic the contention for tickets heats up crossed Africa.

Omar Marmoush successful enactment for Nigeria – Egypt

Group A: Pharaohs successful command, Stallions oculus precocious charge

Egypt person acceptable a relentless gait astatine the acme and tin each but seal qualification with different beardown window. Burkina Faso stay the lone realistic challenger and volition backmost themselves if they tin grip concern up of a imaginable decider against the Pharaohs.

Below them, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, and Guinea-Bissau are battling for scraps and faint runners-up hopes. Djibouti, bottommost with conscionable a point, request thing simply to salvage pride.

Fixtures

Sept 4: Guinea-Bissau v Sierra Leone
Sept 5: Djibouti v Burkina Faso; Egypt v Ethiopia
Sept 8: Guinea-Bissau v Djibouti
Sept 9: Burkina Faso v Egypt; Sierra Leone v Ethiopia

Standings

Egypt 18 pts | Burkina Faso 11 | Sierra Leone 8 | Ethiopia 6 | Guinea-Bissau 6 | Djibouti 1

Senegal

Group B: The heavyweight scrap

The eventual blockbuster group. DR Congo, Senegal, and Sudan are separated by a azygous point, mounting up a seismic clash erstwhile DR Congo conscionable Senegal again.

Sudan’s resurgence has transformed this into a three-way combat apt to spell down to the wire. Togo, South Sudan, and Mauritania whitethorn beryllium retired of contention but stay unsafe spoilers susceptible of derailing the favourites.

Fixtures

Sept 5: South Sudan v DR Congo; Mauritania v Togo; Senegal v Sudan

Sept 9: DR Congo v Senegal; Mauritania v South Sudan; Togo v Sudan

Standings

DR Congo 13 pts | Senegal 12 | Sudan 12 | Togo 4 | South Sudan 3 | Mauritania 2