Online Reporter
CAIRO. – Homeless Sierra Leone’s national football team, the Leone Stars, arrived in Morocco on Sunday ahead of their opening 2027 AFCON qualifier against Zimbabwe.
Sierra Leone will face Zimbabwe on Thursday at the Ben M’Hamed Stadium in El Jadida, Morocco.
The fixture marks the start of Sierra Leone’s AFCON 2027 qualifying campaign.
Forty-eight African nations will continue the long and exciting journey to the Finals of the 2027 AFCON to be held in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
On Thursday, the Qualifiers will begin and will run until Tuesday, October 6, at the completion of Matchday 2.
A total of 24 matches will be played across 12 groups between Thursday and Saturday.
Match Day 1 will have a number of exciting fixtures including a heavyweight West African meeting between Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana in Bouaké, Morocco against Gabon in Rabat, Egypt versus Angola in Cairo and Algeria hosting Zambia in Tizi-Ouzou.
One of the most anticipated matches of the opening round will see former African champions Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana meet in Bouaké.
The fixture also marks the start of a new cycle for the Elephants under returning coach Hervé Renard, who has named eight newcomers in his squad.
Ghana, meanwhile, have recalled some players who missed the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Elsewhere, DR Congo host Equatorial Guinea, while Sierra Leone take on Zimbabwe in Group E.
Cameroon open their Group G campaign against Comoros, with Namibia facing Congo in the group’s other match.
Co-hosts Uganda begin their Group H programme away to Tunisia, while Libya welcome Botswana.
Mauritania face Central African Republic in Group F to complete Thursday’s programme.
Morocco start their Group A campaign against Gabon at the Complexe Sportif Prince Moulay Abdallah in Rabat.
The Atlas Lions enter a new era under Mohamed Ouahbi, who has named uncapped youngsters Abdellah Ouazane, Soufian El Faouzi and Yassir Zabiri in his first senior squad.
Gabon also arrive with a new coach, Sébastien Migné, and begin a new chapter following former captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s retirement from international football.
The first two teams in each group will qualify, except in Groups D, H and L, where Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania are automatically qualified and only the highest-ranked team outside the respective host nation will advance.
Following Matchdays 1 and 2, the campaign will resume from 9-17 November, before the final two rounds are played from 22-30 March 2027.
TotalEnergies CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027 Qualifiers – Matchday 1 Fixtures
Thursday, 24 September 2026 –
All times GMT
• Group G: Namibia vs Congo – 13h00
• Group E: DR Congo vs Equatorial Guinea – 16h00
•Group F: Mauritania vs Central African Republic – 16h00
• Group H: Libya vs Botswana – 16h00
• Group C: Côte d’Ivoire vs Ghana – 19h00
• Group E: Sierra Leone vs Zimbabwe – 19h00
• Group G: Cameroon vs Comoros – 19h00
• Group H: Tunisia vs Uganda – 19h00
Friday, 25 September 2026 –
All times GMT
• Group L: Tanzania vs Guinea-Bissau – 13h00
• Group A: Niger vs Lesotho – 15h00
• Group B: Malawi vs South Sudan – 16h00
• Group C: The Gambia vs Somalia – 16h00
• Group I: Togo vs Burundi – 16h00
• Group J: Sudan vs Ethiopia – 16h00
• Group K: Rwanda vs Liberia – 16h00
• Group L: Nigeria vs Madagascar – 16h00
• Group A: Morocco vs Gabon – 19h00
• Group B: Egypt vs Angola – 19h00
• Group F: Burkina Faso vs Benin – 19h00
• Group I: Algeria vs Zambia – 19h00
• Group J: Senegal vs Mozambique – 19h00
• Group K: Mali vs Cape Verde – 19h00
Saturday, 26 September 2026 – All times GMT
• Group D: Kenya vs Eritrea – 13h00
• Group D: South Africa vs Guinea – 16h00 – Sports Reporter/CAF
