THE quest for African tickets to the 2026 World Cup will begin this week as some of the heavyweights of the continent go to battle.
Nigeria, Egypt, Algeria and some of the big teams who missed out the last time are on a mission to get it right this time, beginning from this week’s fixtures.
Thankfully, there are more spots up for grabs as the continent’s automatic slots have increased from five to nine, with the possibility of an additional one through a play-offs tournament.
The World Cup will be expanded to 48 teams from the 2026 edition, which will be hosted by the United States of America, Canada and Mexico.
From today, 40 nations will start vying for the continent’s nine automatic finals spots in North America, as Rwanda host Zimbabwe in Nigeria’s Group C.
There are also fixtures in Groups A, B and H, with Ethiopia welcoming Sierra Leone, DR Congo hosting Mauritania and Namibia away to Equatorial Guinea.
Tomorrow, the Super Eagles begin their journey back to the global tournament as they host Lesotho in Uyo, hoping to kick off with a win in order to avoid the heartbreak of 2022.
Even without their top scorer Victor Osimhen and most important midfielder Wilfred Ndidi as well as wideman Samuel Chukwueze, Nigeria are expected to ease past the visiting Southern Africans before proceeding to Rwanda on Sunday to battle Zimbabwe.
The Super Eagles are aiming for a seventh World Cup appearance since their brilliant debut in 1994, incidentally in the USA.
Even without Osimhen and Chukwueze, head coach Jose Peseiro can still call on quality replacements in the likes of Victor Boniface, Ademola Lookman and Taiwo Awoniyi, although the midfield is light without the imposing presence of Ndidi.
South Africa, who also missed out on Qatar 2022, will host Benin Republic on Saturday to round off the first matchday for Group C.
Algeria, another heavyweight absentee from the World Cup in Qatar, will welcome Somalia in a Group G clash in Algiers.
The Pharaohs of Egypt also failed to reach Qatar in 2022 and they begin their redemption journey for 2026 in Cairo tomorrow when they host Djibouti in Group A.
On their part, Cote d’Ivoire, another big team that failed to qualify for Qatar 2022, host Seychelles on Friday night in Group F.
There are also fixtures for all of Africa’s representatives in Qatar apart from the history-making Morocco who reached the semi-finals.
Africa’s trailblazers in Qatar received a bye this week after Eritrea withdrew before their scheduled meeting.
Ghana, who stopped Nigeria on the way to Qatar but failed to progress beyond the group stages at the World Cup, start another quest on Friday when they welcome Madagascar in Group I.
On the same Friday night, eight-time participants Cameroon, who narrowly missed out on the knockout rounds in Qatar after beating Brazil, host Mauritius in Group D, while Tunisia welcome Sao Tome and Principe in Group H.
African champions Senegal reached the knockout rounds in Qatar, 20 years after their only previous participation in the World Cup, and they are eager to return for a third time.
The Teranga Lions, who reached the quarter-finals on their first try in 2002, begin their 2026 World Cup quest at home to South Sudan in Group B.
Notably, Nigeria’s Group C opponents Zimbabwe, who play their home matches in Rwanda, are among 19 teams prohibited from hosting qualifiers due to substandard stadiums.
The likes of Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia and Somalia will also play ‘home’ fixtures at neutral venues as they do no have good enough facilities.
MATCHDAY 1 FIXTURES
WEDNESDAY
Equatorial Guinea vs Namibia
Rwanda vs Zimbabwe
DR Congo vs Mauritania
Ethiopia vs Sierra Leone
THURSDAY
Burundi vs Gambia
Botswana vs Mozambique
NIGERIA VS LESOTHO
Sudan vs Togo
Gabon vs Kenya
Algeria vs Somalia
Egypt vs Djibouti
Cape Verde vs Angola
FRIDAY
Eswatini vs Libya
Comoros vs Central African Republic
Guinea vs Uganda
Liberia vs Malawi
Zambia vs Congo
Ghana vs Madagascar
Mali vs Chad
Burkina Faso vs Guinea-Bissau
