Al Ahly, Raja and AS FAR handed favourable paths in CAF Confederation Cup draw

CAF has confirmed the first two preliminary-round draws for the 2026-27 CAF Confederation Cup, with Al Ahly, Raja CA and AS FAR among the leading clubs given seemingly favourable routes to the group stage.

The draw was held at the Confederation of African Football’s headquarters in Cairo on Thursday. The competition will feature 56 clubs, with the eight highest-ranked teams exempted from the first preliminary round and entering the tournament in the second.

The other 48 teams will contest 24 two-legged ties in the opening round. The winners will join the eight exempted clubs to form the 32-team second preliminary round.

The eight clubs receiving byes are Al Ahly, Azam FC, USM Alger, CR Belouizdad, Raja CA, AS FAR, Maniema Union and Kaizer Chiefs.

Al Ahly, the most successful club in African football, will face either Somalia’s Mogadishu City or Uganda’s Kitara FC in the second preliminary round.

Raja CA will meet the winner of El Kanemi Warriors of Nigeria and Benin’s Adjidja FC, while AS FAR will play the winner of Chad’s AS PSI and Cote d’Ivoire’s FC Khorogo.

USM Alger have been drawn against the winner of Ethiopia’s Panthers and Benin’s ASPAC FC. CR Belouizdad will face either Burkina Faso’s Customs FC or Guinea’s Hafia FC.

Azam FC will meet the winner of the tie between Egypt’s ZED FC and Djibouti’s Telecom Djibouti. The winner of Al Hilal Al-Sahel of Sudan against Ethiopia’s Wolidya Dicha will play the winner of Zanzibar’s KMKM FC and Al Ahli SC of Tripoli.

First preliminary-round ties

The first legs will take place from 4 to 6 September 2026, with the return matches scheduled for 11 to 13 September.

The draw produced the following ties:

– Mogadishu City v Kitara FC – ZED FC v Telecom Djibouti – Al Hilal Al-Sahel v Wolidya Dicha – KMKM FC v Al Ahli SC – Al Ahli Madani v Tusker FC – Wau Salaam v Singida Black Stars – Panthers v ASPAC FC – AS PSI v FC Khorogo – Customs FC v Hafia FC – El Kanemi Warriors v Adjidja FC – FC Amadou Diallo v East End Lions – Shooting Stars v CS Sfaxien – AS Gabes v Diambars FC – Vitesse FC v Real Bamako – Djoliba AC v Nations FC – AS ZAM v ASKO de Kara – University of Namibia (UNAM) v Kabuscorp do Palanca – Red Arrows v FC Rouge – Durban City v Rukinzo FC – Pamplemousses FC v Jwaneng Galaxy – Panther Sportif v Rayon Sports – Atomic FC v Black Bulls – DC Virunga v Bazar Brothers – Green Mamba v 1o de Agosto

Second preliminary round

The second-round first legs will be played from 16 to 18 October 2026, followed by the return matches between 23 and 25 October.

The fixtures are:

– Winner of Mogadishu City/Kitara FC v Al Ahly – Winner of ZED FC/Telecom Djibouti v Azam FC – Winner of Al Hilal Al-Sahel/Wolidya Dicha v winner of KMKM FC/Al Ahli SC – Winner of Al Ahli Madani/Tusker FC v winner of Wau Salaam/Singida Black Stars – Winner of Panthers/ASPAC FC v USM Alger – Winner of AS PSI/FC Khorogo v AS FAR – Winner of Customs FC/Hafia FC v CR Belouizdad – Winner of El Kanemi Warriors/Adjidja FC v Raja CA – Winner of FC Amadou Diallo/East End Lions v winner of Shooting Stars/CS Sfaxien – Winner of AS Gabes/Diambars FC v winner of Vitesse FC/Real Bamako – Winner of Djoliba AC/Nations FC v winner of AS ZAM/ASKO de Kara – Winner of UNAM/Kabuscorp do Palanca v Maniema Union – Winner of Red Arrows/FC Rouge v Kaizer Chiefs – Winner of Durban City/Rukinzo FC v winner of Pamplemousses FC/Jwaneng Galaxy – Winner of Panther Sportif/Rayon Sports v winner of Atomic FC/Black Bulls – Winner of DC Virunga/Bazar Brothers v winner of Green Mamba/1o de Agosto

The group stage will begin from 27 to 29 November 2026. Its remaining matchweeks are scheduled for 4-6 December, 18-20 December, 8-10 January 2027, 15-17 January and 22-24 January.

The quarter-finals will be played over two legs from 26 to 28 February and 5 to 7 March 2027. The semi-final first legs are scheduled for 9-11 April, with the return fixtures from 16-18 April.

The final will be held between 9 and 31 May 2027, although the precise date has not yet been confirmed.

USM Alger are the holders after beating Zamalek on penalties in last season’s final.

The tournament winners will receive $4m, while every club eliminated during the preliminary rounds will be paid a solidarity grant of $100,000 under CAF’s support scheme for participating clubs.