Central African Republic and Burkina Faso seek first AFCON 2027 qualifying victory

Central African Republic and Burkina Faso meet on Monday in the second round of AFCON 2027 qualifying, with both sides looking for their first win after dropping points in their opening matches.

The fixture will not be played in Bangui because the Barthelemy Boganda sports complex does not meet the required standards. Instead, the match will take place at Stade Larbi Zaouli in Casablanca, Morocco.

Kick-off is scheduled for 16:00 GMT, which is also the local time in Morocco and Burkina Faso. It will begin at 17:00 in Central African Republic and 18:00 in France.

RTB is expected to show the match in Burkina Faso. No broadcaster has been announced in France, while the game will be available on beIN Sports Mena and Canal+ in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa.

Both teams surrendered points in the opening round. Central African Republic were beaten 3-1 by Mauritania, while Burkina Faso were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Benin.

Central African Republic are still seeking their first appearance at the final tournament of the Africa Cup of Nations. Their campaign began with defeat by Mauritania in El Jadida, Morocco, despite Goduine Koyalipou equalising early in the second half.

That result was particularly damaging for the Fauves, who had identified Mauritania as the most accessible opponent in the group. They will also be without several important players for Monday’s match.

Geoffrey Kondogbia of OM and Louis Mafouta, who has made a prolific start to the season with Le Mans with 3 goals in Ligue 1, are both unavailable. Julien Kouadio is suspended after being sent off in the opening game.

Burkina Faso also have work to do following their disappointing start against Benin. The Stallions took the lead through Lassina Traore’s penalty but were unable to protect their advantage, allowing Benin to create too many opportunities after the interval.

Amir Abdou must now lift a team that has gone four matches without a win in all competitions. His selection has also been weakened by a number of absences.

Dango Ouattara is out through illness, while Bertrand Traore has been left with his new club Wolverhampton. Cyriaque Irie was not selected after failing to make himself available to the national team within the timeframe set by his manager.

With neither side having won in the opening round, Monday’s meeting offers both Central African Republic and Burkina Faso the chance to revive their qualifying campaigns.