2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers
Rwanda, Ethiopia set to kick start FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers
Two teams from the CECAFA Zone Ethiopia and Rwanda will face separate opponents as the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers for Africa kick-off on Wednesday.
The Amavubi of Rwanda under new coach Torsten Frank Spittler will hosts the Warriors of Zimbabwe in a Group C match at the Huye Stadium on Wednesday.
Spittler has made it clear that although Zimbabwe has just had their FIFA suspension lifted and have not played competitive International football in a while, they should not be taken lightly.
Ethiopia will also take on Sierra Leone in a Group A match they will host at the El-Abdi Stadium in Morocco. Gebremedhin Haile who was appointed few days ago will be in-charge of the Ethiopian team that will be eager to make a good start.
On Thursday Five teams from the CECAFA Zone will all be in action with Sudan who have political challenges back home hosting Togo in a Group B match in Saudi Arabia. Burundi will also play host to Gambia in a Group F match at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Djibouti will start their Group A campaign with a visit to Egypt, while Somalia will also play away to former African champions Algeria in a Group G tie. The Harambee Stars of Kenya led by inspirational skipper Micheal Olunga will play away to Gabon in a Group F battle.
Uganda Cranes under the guidance of their new experienced coach Paul Put will face a tricky test against Guinea in a Group G match to be played in Morocco. Tanzania and South Sudan will also play away matches against Niger and Senegal respectively on November 18th, 2023
Initially 54 African teams entered the qualifiers and were divided into nine groups with only the winners assured of a place at the finals. However Eritrea withdrew few weeks ago leaving Group E with five teams.
Groups
Group A: Egypt, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Djibouti
Group B: Senegal, DR Congo, Mauritania, Togo, Sudan, South Sudan
Group C: Nigeria, South Africa, Benin, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Lesotho
Group D: Cameroon, Cape Verde, Angola, Libya, Eswatini, Mauritius
Group E: Morocco, Zambia, Congo, Tanzania, Niger, Eritrea (withdrew)
Group F: Ivory Coast, Gabon, Kenya, The Gambia, Burundi, Seychelles
Group G: Algeria, Guinea, Uganda, Mozambique, Botswana, Somalia
Group H: Tunisia, Equatorial Guinea, Namibia, Malawi, Liberia, Sao Tome and Principe
Group I: Mali, Ghana, Madagascar, Central African Republic, Comoros, Chad
2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers
Rwanda seek away win to maintain lead in FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers
The Amavubi of Rwanda will be hungry to pick a positive result away to Benin inorder to maintain their lead in Group C of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers.
After a draw against Zimbabwe and a deserved 2-0 win against South Africa, Rwanda are top of Group C with 4 points, ahead of South Africa who have 3 points.
Torsten Frank Spittler, the Rwanda coach has made it clear that they will have to handle the match with a lot of caution and discipline. Benin will host the Rwanda team at the Felix H. Boigny Stadium in Ivory Coast.
Ethiopia who have so far collected 1 point from two matches played will also be in action tonight away to Guinea Bissau in a Group A match, while Sudan take on hosts Mauritania in a Group B match in Nouakchott.
Meanwhile in some of the matches played on Wednesday, South Sudan earned a 1-1 draw away to Togo in a Group B tie, while Djibouti suffered a 2-1 defeat to hosts Sierra Leone in a Group A match played in El Jadida in Morocco.
2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers
Djibouti, South Sudan face away hurdles in FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers
Two teams from the CECAFA Zone Djibouti and South Sudan will this evening be in action away from home in Match 3 of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers 2026.
Djibouti will face Sierra Leone in a Group A match to be played in El Jadida in Morocco, while the Bright Star of South Sudan battle Togo in a Group B match in Lome.
The Djibouti team will be hungry to register their first win in the qualifiers having lost the first two matches played last year. In their opening match of the campaign Djibouti suffered a 6-0 defeat a way to Egypt, and later lost the second match 1-0 to 10-man Guinea Bissau.
Nicolas Dupius, the South Sudan coach has also made I clear that his players are determined to play their hearts out and get a good result. “We know Togo is not an easy team, but we have prepared well and are ready to give our best,” added Dupius.
The Bright Star started with a 4-0 defeat to Senegal, and battled to a goalless draw against Mauritania in the second Group B match.
On Thursday three other teams from the CECAFA Zone will also be in action with Ethiopia playing away to Guinea Bissau in a Group A tie, while Mauritania host Sudan in Nouakchott. Rwanda who have already garnered four points from two matches played will face Benin in Group C match to be played in Senegal
CECAFA giants Uganda will hosts Botswana in a Group G match at their refurbished Mandela National Stadium, Namboole on Friday. The Harambee Stars of Kenya will host Burundi in a Group F match to be played in Malawi, while Mozambique host Somalia with all matches to be played on Friday.
Fixtures for June 5th, 2024
Sierra Leone vs Djibouti (Group A) | 1600 | El Jadida, Morocco
Togo vs South Sudan (Group B) | 1600 | Lome, Togo
Central African Republic vs Chad (Group I) | 1600 | Oujda, Morocco
Namibia vs Liberia (Group H) | 1600 | Johannesburg, South Africa
Tunisia vs Equatorial Guinea (Group H) | 1900 | Rades, Tunisia
Fixtures for June 6th, 2024
Malawi vs Sao Tome e Principe (Group H) | 1300 | Lilongwe, Malawi
Guinea Bissau v Ethiopia (Group A) | 1600 | Bissau, Guinea Bissau
Mauritania v Sudan (Group B) | 1600 | Nouakchott, Mauritania
Libya v Mauritius (Group D) | 1600 | Tripoli, Libya
Congo v Niger (Group E) | 1600 | Kinshasa, DR Congo
Egypt v Burkina Faso (Group A) | 1900 | Cairo, Egypt
Senegal v DR Congo (Group B) | 1900 | Diamniadio, Senegal
Benin v Rwanda (Group C) | 1900 | Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire
Algeria v Guinea (Group G) | 1900 | Algiers, Algeria
Mali v Ghana (Group I) | 1900 | Bamako, Mali
2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers
Rwanda top Group C of FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers
The Amavubi of Rwanda are top of Group C with four points after two rounds in the qualifiers of the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Under new coach Torsten Frank Spittler, Rwanda started the campaign with a goalless draw against Zimbabwe last week, and followed it with a sweet 2-0 win against South Africa in a match played on Monday in Huye Stadium, Butare.
The Amavubi are the only team in the group who have not conceded a goal after two matches, with second placed Bafana Bafana (3 points) having conceded three goals, and third placed Nigeria also two goals after two draws.
However, Spittler has made it clear that it is still too early to get excited. ” It is good we have four points after two matches. But we still have a lot of work to do ahead of the other matches of the qualifiers next year, ” added the coach.
In Group B Sudan are placed second after picking a draw against Togo and a 1-0 win against the Democratic Republic of Congo. Senegal who have the same number of points with Sudan have a better goal difference, and South Sudan are bottom of the group with one point. James Kwesi Appiah, the Sudan coach has said although the group is tough, they are also up to the task to perform well. ” After collecting four points, we need to keep working hard to be able to win more matches, ” he added.
Tanzania are placed fourth in Group E with three points after stopping Niger 1-0, but suffered a 2-0 defeat to 2022 FIFA World Cup semi-finalists Morocco.
In Group F Kenya with three points are placed third with three points after they started the campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Gabon, but returned to humble Seychelles 5-0 in the second match. Burundi also with three points are placed fourth after stopping The Gambia 3-2 and lost 2-1 to Gabon in the second match played on Sunday in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Uganda Cranes who lost their opening Group G match 2-1 to Guinea and stopped a 10-man Somalia team are placed fourth with three points. Somalia who lost all their two matches are bottom of the log. In Group A after one draw and a loss, Ethiopia are placed fifth, while Djibouti after two defeats are bottom of the group.
Action for the third and fourth round of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers 2026 will return in March next year.
Group A: Egypt, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Djibouti
Group B: Senegal, DR Congo, Mauritania, Togo, Sudan, South Sudan
Group C: Nigeria, South Africa, Benin, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Lesotho
Group D: Cameroon, Cape Verde, Angola, Libya, Eswatini, Mauritius
Group E: Morocco, Zambia, Congo, Tanzania, Niger, Eritrea (withdrew)
Group F: Ivory Coast, Gabon, Kenya, The Gambia, Burundi, Seychelles
Group G: Algeria, Guinea, Uganda, Mozambique, Botswana, Somalia
Group H: Tunisia, Equatorial Guinea, Namibia, Malawi, Liberia, Sao Tome and Principe
2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers
Sudan maintain good run in FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers
Sudan have maintained a good run in the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers after playing two Group B matches since last week.
The Nile Crocodile of Sudan under new coach James Kwesi Appiah kick started the campaign with a 1-1 draw against Togo, and followed it up with a 1-0 win against DR Congo in a match played on Sunday in Libya.
An own goal by Charles Picked was enough for Sudan to pick maximum points against DR Congo at the Benina Maryrs Stadium in Libya. The Sudan team went top of the log with four points.
” We are happy that after two matches we have collected four points. But we continue to work hard ahead of other matches, ” said Appiah, Ghana’s former national coach.
In another match played on Sunday, Burundi suffered a 2-1 defeat to Gabon in a Group F match played at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Jim Allevinah and Denis Bouanga scored for Gabon who picked their second straight win, while Abedi Bigirimana pulled a goal back later in the match. Burundi started their campaign with a 3-2 win against The Gambia last week.
On Monday evening Djibouti suffered a 1-0 defeat to 10-man Guinea Bissau, while Kenya humbled Seychelles 5-0 with skipper Micheal Olunga scoring a brace. Masoud Juma, Rooney Onyango and Benson Omala were also on the score sheet.
Action continues on Tuesday with six teams from the CECAFA Zone in action. Rwanda will hosts South Africa, while Somalia and Uganda will tussle it out in a Group G match to be played in Morocco. South Sudan will face Mauritania, while Ethiopia play Burkina Faso, and Tanzania host Morocco.
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