Nigeria TV Info 

2027 AFCON Prelims Qualifiers Draw Holds Today in Rabat

The 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) preliminary round qualifiers draw is taking place today, Tuesday 13 January 2026, in Rabat, Morocco, marking the official start of the road to AFCON 2027. The draw, organised by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), will be broadcast live on CAF TV from 13:00 local time (12:00 GMT / 14:00 Cairo time).

Twelve of Africa’s lowest-ranked national teams — including Lesotho, Burundi, Ethiopia, Eswatini, South Sudan, Mauritius, Chad, São Tomé and Príncipe, Djibouti, Somalia, Seychelles and Eritrea — have been seeded into two pots based on the latest FIFA rankings. Pot 1 contains the six higher-ranked sides, while Pot 2 holds the six lowest-ranked teams.

The draw procedure pairs each Pot 1 side with a Pot 2 opponent, creating six two-legged preliminary ties. The lower-ranked team will host the first leg, offering them a chance to leverage home support off the bat. The six winners will advance to the main qualifiers group stage, where they will join 42 higher-ranked nations already seeded into that phase.

CAF’s ongoing plan for AFCON 2027 qualifiers reflects a continued effort to give all member associations a fair shot at reaching the continent’s premier football tournament — which will be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.