CAF has appointed the referees who will take charge of several high-profile matches in the opening round of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, including Egypt’s meeting with Angola, Morocco’s clash with Gabon and Algeria’s encounter with Zambia.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) Referees Committee has confirmed the officials for the first round of matches as the qualifying campaign for the tournament in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda gets under way.
The group stage begins on Thursday, 24 September, with the second round scheduled to conclude on Tuesday, 6 October. A total of 24 matches will be played across 12 groups between Thursday and Saturday, 26 September, as teams begin their journey towards the finals.
The 2027 Africa Cup of Nations will feature 24 teams at the tournament, which is scheduled to take place from 19 June to 17 July in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
Among the most anticipated fixtures in the opening round is the West African meeting between Ivory Coast and Ghana in Bouaké.
According to WinWin sources within CAF, Algerian referee Mustapha Ghorbal has been appointed to take charge of that match on Thursday.
Ghorbal will be assisted by compatriots Akram Zahrouni and Mokrane Gourari, while Lotfi Boukouassa has been appointed as the fourth official. Moroccan referee Yahya Hadka will serve as the referee observer.
Friday’s schedule includes several other notable matches involving some of Africa’s leading national teams.
South African referee Tom Abongele will oversee Morocco’s meeting with Gabon at the Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat.
Egypt’s opening qualifier against Angola at Cairo International Stadium will be handled by a Kenyan refereeing team led by Peter Kamaku.
In another Friday fixture, Mauritanian referee Abdel Aziz Bouh will lead the officiating team for Tunisia’s match against Uganda at the Rades Stadium in Tunis.
Algeria’s meeting with Zambia at the Hussein Ait Ahmed Stadium in Tizi Ouzou will be officiated by a Congolese team headed by Yannick Kambenga Malala.
The qualifying competition involves 48 teams divided into 12 groups of four.
The campaign will be played over six rounds. The top two teams from each group will normally qualify for the finals.
However, groups four, eight and 12 have a different qualification arrangement because Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have already secured automatic places as host nations. In those groups, only the highest-ranked team among the remaining sides will qualify alongside the host country.
Following the opening two rounds, the qualifiers will resume between 9 and 17 November.
The final two rounds are scheduled to be played between 22 and 30 March 2027, completing the qualifying campaign for the tournament in East Africa.
