The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially confirmed the clubs that will participate in the qualifying rounds of the 2026/27 CAF Champions League, with Nigerian champions Enugu Rangers and runners-up Rivers United among the continent’s leading contenders.
CAF released the list on Monday, confirming that 24 clubs from 12 member associations allocated two slots each will enter the competition from the preliminary rounds.
Nigeria’s representatives, Rangers and Rivers United, will be joined by some of Africa’s biggest clubs, including defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa, Egyptian giants Zamalek and Pyramids, TP Mazembe of DR Congo, Esperance and Club Africain of Tunisia, Orlando Pirates, Young Africans, Simba, ASEC Mimosas, Petro Luanda and Renaissance Berkane.
The complete list of countries with two representatives includes Algeria, Angola, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Egypt, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania and Tunisia.
CAF also confirmed that 40 other member associations will each have a single representative in the competition.
Among those clubs are Medeama of Ghana, Gor Mahia of Kenya, Horoya of Guinea, APR of Rwanda, Vipers of Uganda, Power Dynamos of Zambia and Scotland of Zimbabwe.
The governing body noted that representatives from Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Somalia are yet to be confirmed because their domestic league seasons have not concluded. The current league leaders are 15 de Agosto/Leones Vegetarianos in Equatorial Guinea, Canchungo in Guinea-Bissau and Heegan in Somalia.
The announcement comes weeks after CAF unveiled the full calendar for the 2026/27 inter-club season and confirmed significant changes to the competition format.
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The opening preliminary round will be played between September 4 and 6, with the return fixtures scheduled for September 11 to 13.
The second preliminary round will take place between October 16 and 18 before the return legs from October 23 to 25.
The group stage begins from November 27 to 29, followed by Matchday Two on December 4 to 6, Matchday Three on December 18 to 20, before resuming in January with fixtures on January 8 to 10, January 15 to 17 and January 22 to 24.
The knockout stages will begin with the quarter finals in late February and early March, while the semi-finals are scheduled for April 9 to 11 and April 16 to 18.
CAF has also confirmed that the 2026/27 Champions League final will be staged in May 2027, although the exact date and host venue are yet to be announced.
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The upcoming campaign will also be the first to fully operate under CAF’s revised qualification format, with clubs eliminated in the second preliminary round of the Champions League no longer dropping into the CAF Confederation Cup, increasing the stakes for every qualifying fixture on the road to the group stage.
