(CAF) conducts the draw for the preliminary round of (African Nations 2025)
Sudan Events – Agencies
The draw for the preliminary round of the 2025 African Cup of Nations qualifiers in Morocco was held in Cairo, on Tuesday, about one week after the end of the last tournament hosted by Côte d’Ivoire that won its title.
The eight lowest-ranked teams on the continent will play four matches of two home-and-away matches in the period from 20 to 26 next March.
The lowest-ranked Somalia would face Eswatini, while Sao Tome and Principe would play against South Sudan.
The rest of the matches will bring together Chad and Mauritius, while Djibouti will play Liberia.
Both Liberia and Mauritius previously qualified for the finals.
The winners of the four preliminary round matches advance to the group stage of the qualifiers, joining 44 other countries.
48 teams will be divided into 12 groups, each containing four teams, and the first and second from each group will qualify for the finals scheduled in Morocco.
Morocco will also participate in the qualifiers despite automatically qualifying as hosts of the tournament, and therefore only one other team from its group will qualify.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has not yet announced the date of the draw for the group stage or finals, which Morocco wants to host in mid-2025, which likely conflicts with the newly expanded Club World Cup in the United States.
The African Cup of Nations qualifiers are scheduled to be completed by the end of this year. The matches will be held during the three international breaks in September, October and November, with two rounds of matches in each period.
