Each group will consist of six nations from 54 African countries.
Africa has opted for a streamlined World Cup qualification process for the upcoming 2026 finals, eliminating three rounds to adopt a format that spans nearly two years.
In an announcement on Friday, the Confederation of African Football revealed that the continent will be granted nine spots in the expanded 48-team tournament held in North America. The qualifying structure will consist of nine groups, and only the group winners will secure qualification for the World Cup.
Previously, Africa's World Cup qualification process comprised multiple stages: preliminary rounds for lower-ranked countries, followed by a group stage, and two-legged playoffs to determine the continent's five representatives in the finals.
In contrast, for the 2026 tournament, the entire African qualifying process will span a duration of 23 months, allowing ample time for the nine finalists to emerge. This is a significant shift from the condensed six-month period allocated for the previous tournament in Qatar.
While no specific details were provided, CAF anticipates the participation of all 54 African countries in the qualifying process. As a result, each group is expected to consist of six nations, and teams will likely be seeded for the draw based on the latest FIFA rankings.
In November 2025, the four highest-ranked runners-up from the groups will participate in a CAF playoff tournament. The victors of this playoff will then proceed to the FIFA playoff tournament in March 2026, vying for a potential 10th African slot in the World Cup.
