The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has appointed Egyptian reeree Amin Omar to take charge of the African Champions League fixture between Tanzania’s Simba and Equatorial Guinea’s 15 August after the originally selected Mauritian officials were unable to travel.
The emergency appointment is intended to ensure the first-leg match in the second preliminary round goes ahead on Wednesday, 21 October, in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
The game had initially been scheduled for Sunday but was postponed after the refereeing arrangements were disrupted. The venue was also changed from Equatorial Guinea to Tanzania because the home side could not provide a suitable stadium for the encounter.
CAF’s Referees Committee moved quickly to find replacements, contacting an Egyptian officiating team led by international referee Omar after the Mauritian crew, headed by Ahmed Imtiaz Heeralall, became unavailable.
The Egyptian officials travelled to Dar es Salaam on Monday to prepare for the rescheduled match, which is expected to be played at Uhuru Stadium.
Egyptian officials take charge of Simba fixture
Omar will serve as the centre referee, with Ahmed Hossam Taha appointed as the first assistant referee and Samir Gamal as the second assistant. Mohamed El Ghazi has been named as the fourth official.
The appointment brings an end to the immediate uncertainty surrounding the officiating arrangements for the continental fixture, which forms part of the second preliminary round of the 2026-27 CAF Champions League.
The match is expected to take place on the artificial turf at Uhuru Stadium in Dar es Salaam.
The remaining fixtures in the second preliminary round are expected to be completed following the scheduled conclusion of other matches on Sunday, 25 October. These include the return leg between Simba and 15 August, the Equatorial Guinea champions.
Meanwhile, the CAF Confederation Cup has also been affected by a postponement involving Algerian club CR Belouizdad and Mauritanian side AS Douanes.
That match was delayed following an appeal by Guinean club Hafia Conakry to the Court of Arbitration for Sport over the staging of the fixture.
CAF confirms date for group-stage draw
Away from the preliminary rounds, CAF has scheduled the draw for the group stages of the 2026-27 Champions League and Confederation Cup for 28 October.
The ceremony will take place at the headquarters of the Egyptian Football Association in the city of 6th of October.
The group stages of both competitions are scheduled to run from November 2026 to January 2027, with the opening round set for 27 and 28 November.
The second round will follow on 4 and 6 December, before the third round takes place on 18 and 19 December.
The remaining three rounds are scheduled for 8 and 9 January, 15 and 16 January, and 22 and 23 January 2027.
The quarter-finals are due to begin with the first legs on 26, 27 or 28 February, while the return matches will be played on 5, 6 or 7 March.
The semi-final first legs are scheduled for 9 and 10 April, with the second legs taking place on 16 and 17 April.
CAF sets prize money for continental competitions
CAF has allocated the period between 9 and 31 May 2027 for the finals of the Champions League and Confederation Cup, although specific dates for the two competitions have not yet been announced.
The winners of Africa’s premier club competitions will receive different financial rewards.
The Champions League champions will earn $6m, while the team that wins the Confederation Cup will receive $4m.
For now, attention remains on the preliminary-round fixtures, with CAF having moved to resolve the refereeing problem ahead of the rescheduled meeting between Simba and 15 August.
