Football: World Cup qualifying seeding in Africa

September 3, 2022, Doha, Qatar. FIFA World Cup and official Adidas Al Rihla ball on the green lawn of the stadium.

Seeding for 2026 World Cup Africa qualifying draw in Abidjan in the Ivory Coast on Wednesday (finals appearances in brackets):

Pot 1

Morocco (6), Senegal (3), Tunisia (6), Algeria (4), Egypt (3), Nigeria (6), Cameroon (8), Mali, Ivory Coast (3)

Pot 2

Burkina Faso, Ghana (4), South Africa (3), Cape Verde, Democratic Republic of Congo (1), Guinea, Zambia, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea

Pot 3

Uganda, Benin, Mauritania, Kenya, Congo Brazzaville, Madagascar, Guinea-Bissau, Namibia, Angola (1)

Pot 4

Mozambique, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Togo (1), Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Central African Republic, Malawi, Libya

Pot 5

Niger, Comoros, Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia, Eswatini, Botswana, Liberia

Pot 6

Lesotho, South Sudan, Mauritius, Chad, Sao Tome e Principe, Djibouti, Seychelles, Eritrea, Somalia

— Groups will consist of one nation from each pot

— Nine group winners qualify for World Cup in Canada, Mexico and United States

— Best four group runners-up enter play-offs and winners qualify for inter-confederation tournament

Matchdays

1, 2: Nov 13-21, 2023

3, 4: June 3-11, 2024

5, 6: Mar 17-25, 2025

7, 8: Sept 1-9, 2025

9, 10: Oct 6-14, 2025

Play-offs

Nov 10-18, 2025

Note: Zimbabwe suspended by FIFA since Feb 2022 over government interference in football

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