Orlando Pirates handed Mauritius test in CAF Champions League draw

Orlando Pirates will begin their 2026-27 CAF Champions League campaign against La Cure Waves SC of Mauritius after the two clubs were drawn together in the first preliminary round on Thursday.

The South African champions qualified for the competition after winning the 2025-26 Betway Premiership, while La Cure Waves earned their place by becoming champions of Mauritius’s National Super League.

Pirates are expected to be strong favourites against the semi-professional island side, with the Buccaneers aiming to make a positive start to their continental campaign.

The first-leg and second-leg ties will be played between 4 and 6 September and 11 and 13 September respectively. The exact venues and kick-off times were not included in the draw details.

Pirates won the African Cup of Champions Clubs – the predecessor to the CAF Champions League – in 1995. They have since reached one Champions League final, in 2013.

Their most recent deep run came in the 2024-25 edition, when they were eliminated in the semi-finals by the eventual winners. Egypt’s Pyramids FC went on to win the final against Mamelodi Sundowns.

Mamelodi Sundowns will not take part in the opening preliminary round after receiving a bye. The club, which won the Champions League in 2016 and again last season, qualified this time as runners-up to Pirates in the 2025-26 Premiership.

Sundowns will enter the competition in the second preliminary round, where they will face either Angola’s Wiliete de Benguela or Foresters Mont Fleuri FC of Seychelles.

The draw also confirmed the opening-round opponents for two other South African clubs competing in continental football.

Durban City will face Burundi’s Rukinzo FC in the first preliminary round of the 2025-26 CAF Confederation Cup. City qualified for the tournament by winning last season’s Nedbank Cup.

Kaizer Chiefs, who finished third in the Premiership, have also been given a bye through to the second preliminary round. They will meet the winners of the tie between Zambia’s Red Arrows and Madagascar’s FC Rouge.