Algerian Radio
The Algerian national football team will learn its opponents in the qualifiers for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), scheduled from June 19 to July 17, during the draw ceremony to be held at the headquarters of the Egyptian Football Association in Cairo, starting at 1:00 PM Algiers time.
The 48 participating teams, including Algeria which is placed in Pot 1, will be distributed into four pots according to the official FIFA rankings published on April 1.
The tournament will be jointly hosted by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, the first time three countries have co-hosted the competition. It also marks the return of AFCON finals to East Africa after a 51-year absence.
The qualifying teams will be divided into 12 groups of four teams each, with the top two teams from each group qualifying for the finals.
Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania will participate in the qualifiers despite having already secured direct qualification as host nations, and additional teams from their groups will join them in the finals.
The qualifying matches will take place during three FIFA international windows:
- September 21 to October 6, 2026 (Matchdays 1 & 2)
- November 9 to 17, 2026 (Matchdays 3 & 4)
- March 22 to 30, 2027 (Matchdays 5 & 6)
Several African football legends will take part in the draw ceremony, including Max-Alain Gradel, William Troost-Ekong, Essam El-Hadary, and Trésor Mputu, according to a statement from the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
During the previous edition of AFCON 2025, Algeria exited the competition in the quarter-finals after a 2-0 defeat to Nigeria.
The four pots ahead of the draw:
Pot 1: Algeria, Mali, Morocco, Tunisia, Nigeria, DR Congo, Egypt, Cameroon, Senegal, Ivory Coast, South Africa, Burkina Faso.
Pot 2: Uganda, Angola, Gabon, Zambia, Benin, Comoros, Madagascar, Cape Verde, Ghana, Guinea, Mozambique, Equatorial Guinea.
Pot 3: Kenya, Libya, Tanzania, Niger, Mauritania, Gambia, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Namibia, Togo, Malawi, Rwanda.
Pot 4: Zimbabwe, Gambia, Congo, Central African Republic, Liberia, Burundi, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Botswana, Eritrea, South Sudan, Somalia.
