_{Zonal champions Somalia have been drawn to face hosts Algeria in the TotalEnergies U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2023.}

_{In the draw conducted in Algiers, Algeria on Wednesday, Somalia have been placed in Group A alongside the hosts Algeria, Senegal and Congo.}

_{CAF President, Dr. Patrice Motsepe, together with several Member Association Presidents also attended the draw. The CAF Head of Competitions Division, Khaled Nassar conducted the draw with the held of two legends, Herita Ilunga (DR Congo) and Algeria’s former youth international Ibrahim Bekakchi}.

_{Algeria will host the U-17 tournament from April 29th to May 19th, 2023 in the cities of Algiers, Constantine and Annaba.}

_{Somalia who stopped South Sudan 3-1 in the final of the Zonal qualifiers played in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia will have their Group A matches played at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers.}

_{South Sudan who will also be making their debut in the competition have been placed in Group C alongside defending champions Cameroon, Mali and Burkina Faso to be based in the city of Annaba. Africa’s best ranked junior team Nigeria are in Group B alongside Morocco, South Africa and Zambia to be based in Constantine.}

_{The top four teams of the tournament will qualify for the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup to be held Peru as the CAF representatives.}

_{Since the U-17 AFCON 2021 was cancelled due to COVID-19, this will be the first edition to have expanded to 12 teams instead of eight. Each of the six zones received two spots in the final tournament.}