* Draw for 12-team preliminary round to take part tomorrow in Cairo, Egypt to be broadcast live on CAF TV from 14h00 CAT
* Pitting Lesotho, Burundi, Ethiopia, eSwatini, South Sudan, Mauritius, Chad, São Tomé e Príncipe, Djibouti, Somalia, Seychelles and Eritrea
By Duncan Mlanjira
Ahead of the conclusion of the Africa Cup of Nations (AfCON) Morocco 2025, the next edition in 2027 to be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, Confederation of African Football (CAF) will conduct a preliminary qualifying draw for 12 lower-placed nations are per the latest FIFA World Rankings that was released in December 2025.
Thus, Malawi Flames — who are placed 35 in Africa and 126 in the world ahead of the next FIFA Rankings update on January 19 — have qualified directly for the group stage of the qualifiers alongside 41 other nations.
The 12 countries below the Flames in the FIFA Rankings, in their ranking order, are Lesotho, Burundi, Ethiopia, eSwatini, South Sudan, Mauritius, Chad, São Tomé e Príncipe, Djibouti, Somalia, Seychelles and Eritrea.
The preliminary round, to be held in Cairo, Egypt tomorrow and to be broadcast live on CAF TV from 14h00 CAT, will see the 12 teams divided into two Pots — the six highest-ranked teams in Pot 1 to face the six lowest-ranked teams in Pot 2.
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The first leg of each tie will be played at the home venue of the lower-ranked team — thus Pot 1 of the highest ranked teams has Lesotho, Burundi, Ethiopia, eSwatini, South Sudan and Mauritius and Pot 2 has Chad, São Tomé e Príncipe, Djibouti, Somalia, Seychelles and Eritrea
The first team drawn from Pot 1 will play against the first team drawn from Pot 2, with the same procedure repeated until all six pairings have been determined.
Following the conclusion of the preliminary round, the six winning teams will advance to join the 42 highest-ranked nations in the draw for the group stage matches of the AfCON 2027 qualifiers.
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