By Amaechi Agbo
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced the venues, dates, and format for the 2026 FIFA World Cup African playoff, setting the stage for a decisive showdown in November 2025.
In a circular CAF confirmed that Morocco, host nation of the upcoming AFCON 2025 in December, will also stage the African play-offs for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
According to the schedule, the semi-final matches of the four-team mini-tournament will take place on November 13, 2025, while the final will be played on November 16, 2025.
The CAF playoff competition will feature the four best runners-up from the nine qualifying groups, determined after Matchday 10 of the qualifiers.
The four teams are Cameroon, Gabon, Nigeria and Democratic Republic of Congo. CAF outlined that in the event of a draw, matches will proceed to extra time and, if necessary, penalty shootouts. Teams will be allowed five substitutions, with a sixth permitted during extra time.
The winner of the Moroccan play-off tournament will advance to the intercontinental play-off scheduled for March 2026, where they will compete against teams from Asia, South America, Oceania, and Concacaf for a chance to claim Africa’s 10th and final slot at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
