The race for nine slots allocated to African sides at the 2026 World Cup in United States of America and Mexico resumes on Wednesday, June 5 with the continent’s two countries with the largest economies, Nigeria and South Africa, desperate to get their qualification destiny back in their hands.
Three-time African champions Nigeria are winless after the opening two rounds of qualifiers after they were held to identical 1-1 draws at home to tiny Lesotho and away to Zimbabwe.
On Friday, the Super Eagles lock horns with 1996 African champions South Africa at the Goodwill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo with both sides keen to gain maximum points to dislodge group C pacesetters Rwanda, who were surprise 2-0 winners over Bafana Bafana on match day two.
Games between the two continental football heavyweights are usually a closely contested affair. At the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year, the Super Eagles prevailed 4-2 in a penalty shootout over Hugo Broos’ Bafana Bafana after Teboho Mokoena’s penalty had cancelled out William Troost Ekong’s opener. Nigeria went on to lose the final to Ivory Coast but they won over neutrals with their expansive play.
Newly installed Super Eagles coach Finidi George is without injured reigning African footballer of the year Victor Osimhen and Nathan Tella who has withdrawn for family reasons but he still boasts considerable firepower in the form of Tella’s Bayer Leverkusen team mate Victor Boniface, Atalanta’s Ademola Lookman, Nice’s Terem Moffi and Leicester City’s Kelechi Iheanacho.
Bafana Bafana’s 23-man squad to face Nigeria and Zimbabwe at the Free State Stadium in Bloomfontein next Monday is headlined by Percy Tau from African Champions League winners Al Ahly of Egypt but is dominated by players from South Africa Premier Soccer League champions Mamelodi Sundowns who have contributed 9 players.
Group C pacesetters Rwanda are in action on Thursday, June 6 away to winless Benin in a game that will be played at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium in Ivory Coast before travelling to confront Lesotho at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, South Africa five days later. The two games are among a dozen ties to be played at neutral venues because would be hosts do not have stadia that meet football governing body CAF guidelines for hosting World Cup qualifiers.
The other mouthwatering fixtures to look out for include Thursday’s group A game between Egypt and Burkina Faso; Senegal’s group B encounter with Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali’s epic collision with Ghana in Bamako and Friday’s clash between Qatar 2022 World Cup semifinalists Morocco and Zambia.
On the same day, Uganda Cranes manager Paul Put pits his coaching wits against Botswana in the first game to be played at the Mandela National Stadium during his tenure.
FIXTURES
WEDNESDAY
Sierra Leone v Djibouti,
Togo v South Sudan,
Namibia v Liberia,
Central African Rep v Chad,
Tunisia v Equatorial Guinea
THURSDAY
Egypt v Burkina Faso,
Guinea Bissau v Ethiopia,
Mauritania v Sudan,
Senegal v DR Congo,
Benin v Rwanda,
Libya v Mauritius,
Congo Brazzaville v Niger,
Algeria v Guinea,
Malawi v Sao Tome and Principe,
Mali v Ghana
FRIDAY
Zimbabwe v Lesotho,
Nigeria v South Africa,
Angola v Eswatini,
Morocco v Zambia,
Ivory Coast v Gabon,
Madagascar v Comoros