The race to qualify for the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) PAMOJA 2027 begins in September, with 48 nations drawn into 12 groups and a series of high-profile fixtures scheduled for the opening two matchdays.
Matchday 1 will take place from 24 to 26 September 2026, with Ghana facing Cote d’Ivoire in one of the most anticipated early encounters. Other major opening-round matches include Morocco against Gabon, Egypt against Angola and Algeria against Zambia.
The first round of fixtures will also see Cameroon play Comoros, Senegal meet Mozambique, Mali take on Cape Verde and Nigeria face Madagascar.
Matchday 2 starts on 28 September and continues until 6 October. Equatorial Guinea will play Sierra Leone, while Zimbabwe take on DR Congo, Botswana meet Tunisia and Central African Republic face Burkina Faso.
The next day’s programme includes Lesotho against Morocco, Burundi versus Algeria, Mozambique against Sudan, Ethiopia against Senegal and Congo against Cameroon.
Ghana’s opening fixtures
Ghana have been placed in Group C alongside Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia and Somalia.
The Black Stars will launch their campaign with a West African derby against Cote d’Ivoire on Thursday, 24 September 2026. The match is scheduled to kick off at 19:00 and will be played in Bouake at the Stade de la Paix.
Ghana will then host The Gambia in their second Group C fixture on Tuesday, 29 September 2026, with the match due to begin at 16:00 GMT.
The meeting with The Gambia will take place five days after Ghana’s trip to face Cote d’Ivoire, giving the Black Stars an early opportunity to establish themselves in the group.
Qualification format
The 48 participating teams have been divided into 12 four-team groups. Each side will play six matches, meeting the other teams in the group home and away.
In groups that do not contain a host nation, the top two teams will qualify for the AFCON 2027 finals.
Co-hosts Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda have already secured automatic places at the tournament. Kenya are in Group D, Uganda are in Group H and Tanzania are in Group L.
Because those nations are already guaranteed qualification, the highest-placed team apart from the host in each of those groups will claim the additional qualifying place.
After the opening two matchdays, the campaign will resume during the FIFA international window from 9 to 17 November 2026. The final two rounds of qualifying will then be played between 22 and 30 March 2027.
The TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) PAMOJA 2027 will be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda from 19 June to 17 July 2027.
The competition will return to East Africa for the first time in more than 50 years, making the 2027 edition a historic staging of Africa’s leading international football tournament.
The key qualifying dates are:
– Matchday 1: 24-26 September 2026
– Matchday 2: 28 September-6 October 2026
– Matchdays 3 and 4: 9-17 November 2026
– Matchdays 5 and 6: 22-30 March 2027
The tournament itself will begin on 19 June and finish on 17 July 2027. With 48 nations competing across 12 groups, the opening fixtures could prove decisive in shaping the qualification race for a place at the finals.
