Ghana, Egypt, Other Africans Close to Qualifying for 2026 World Cup as Nigeria Remains Hopeful
- African countries will play the final round of matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier during the October break
- Tunisia and Morocco have booked their spots at the tournament to be played in the United States, Canada, and Mexico
- CAF has seven automatic slots left, with six countries on the verge of qualification in the first batch of the October games
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The CAF qualifying series for the 2026 FIFA World Cup resumes this month with seven automatic slots left to fill out of the nine allocated for African countries.
North African countries Tunisia and Morocco qualified during the September international break after opening an unassailable lead in Group E and H, with the Carthage Eagles yet to concede.
Source: Getty Images
The two-year-long qualifier will be concluded this month with two matches, but by the end of matchday nine, six countries could have confirmed their qualification.
Group C remains wide open, where five countries: Benin Republic, South Africa, Nigeria, Rwanda, and Lesotho could still qualify after FIFA sanctioned Bafana Bafana.
Benin Republic and South Africa are tied on 14 points, Nigeria and Rwanda have 11 points, while Lesotho has nine points.
Legit.ng looks at the six countries that could qualify in the first round and what they need, as first called by FIFA.
Six African countries close to qualifying
1. Egypt
The seven-time African champions lead Group A with 20 points from eight matches, five ahead of Burkina Faso in second place. The Pharaohs will qualify for the World Cup if they beat Djibouti or Burkina Faso fails to pick the maximum three points against Sierra Leone.
2. Senegal
The Group B battle could extend until the final day, or he decided on matchday nine if the results favour group leaders Senegal. The Tarenga Lions have 18 points, two ahead of the Democratic Republic of Congo. They will qualify if they beat South Sudan and DR Congo fall short of victory against Togo.
3. Cape Verde
Cape Verde is four points clear of Cameroon in Group D and will seal their qualification on matchday nine if they beat Libya. An alternative path is if they draw Libya and Cameroon fail to beat Mauritius.
4. Ivory Coast
Reigning African champions Ivory Coast are one point ahead of Gabon in Group F. The group could be decided on matchday nine if they beat Seychelles and Gabon loses to Gambia. Otherwise, the battle will be decided on the final day.
5. Algeria
Algeria is four points clear of Uganda in second place in Group G and could wrap up their qualification in their first game of October if they beat Somalia or they draw vs Somalia, and Uganda and Mozambique both fail to win, or if Uganda and Mozambique both lose.
Source: Getty Images
6. Ghana
As noted by CAF Online, Ghana will not participate in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, but is on course to qualify for the World Cup. They will qualify if they beat Central African Republic in Group I and Madagascar fails to beat Comoros.
FIFA announces changes to international break
Legit.ng reported that FIFA made changes to the international break ahead of next year, with the September and October windows merged.
The world football governing body merged it into one three-week-long break, with a maximum of four matches allowed for the countries.
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Source: Legit.ng
