With the Africa Cup of Nations tournament (AFCON) 2023 qualifiers currently underway for Ivory Coast 2024, check out the format, teams qualified, fixtures, results, groups, standings, and more
There are currently 48 African countries battling for the 24 spots available for the next AFCON set to take place in January 2024 in the Ivory Coast.
AFCON 2023 qualifiers groups, points table, fixtures, teams, schedule, date, time, results and live scores
2023 AFCON QUALIFIERS STATISTICS
Top Scorers Chart after 5 Round of Matches
TOP 5
1. Victor Osimhen 🇳🇬 – 7 Goals
2. Sadio Mané 🇸🇳 – 5 Goals
3. Patson Daka 🇿🇲 – 4 Goals
4. Dango Ouattara 🇧🇫 – 3 Goals
5. Peter Shalulile 🇳🇦 – 3 Goals pic.twitter.com/3anbuMpTUq— Pontius Pilate (@TeddyReign) June 19, 2023
Congratulations to Nigeria and Zambia on qualifying for the 2023 AFCON.
Watch the #AFCON2023 Qualifiers live & in HD on StarTimes & StarTimes ON 📲 https://t.co/S4e6RFRziH#AFCON2023 #StarTimesSports #StarTimes #Ghana #nigeria #zambia #TotalEnergies23AFCONQ pic.twitter.com/uumYi1vcox
— StarTimes Ghana (@startimesghana) June 20, 2023
Congratulations to Mohamed Salah as Egypt have officially qualified for the AFCON 2023!🇪🇬👑
Salah’s AFCON Qualifiers stats:
Matches – 4
Goals – 2
Assists – 3 pic.twitter.com/DjTkDFxluw— Sarah🦋💫❤️YNWA❤️💙🌊🌊💙 (@JATTSOPRANO316) June 14, 2023
Senegal, who are the reigning champions will face fierce competition from other African powerhouses like Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, host nation Ivory Coast, and more.
Senegal will be looking to become the first back-to-back AFCON champions ever since Egypt won three straight titles in 2006, 2008, and 2010.
AFCON qualifiers 2023 format
Teams looking to qualify for AFCON, must progress through a certain group stage style qualification format. The qualifications started out with the lowest-ranked teams pushing through a preliminary stage consisting of 12 teams. These teams were paired up in six matchups, which were contested over two legs. The losers, based on aggregate goals were eliminated, while the six winners joined 42 others in the group stage.
In the group stages, the remaining 48 teams were grouped into 12 groups of four teams each (Groups A-L). Each group played round-robin matches where the top two finishers in each group advanced to AFCON. Meanwhile, the bottom two teams in each group were eliminated. The 24 qualifiers from this ongoing stage will then reach the final tournament.
Several clubs have already qualified including the hosts Ivory Coast. Despite winning a guranted spots, the Les Elephants still played in the qualification matches, which means that only one other qualifier can emerge from their group (Group H).
AFCON qualifiers 2023 teams qualified so far
Given below are the teams that have already secured qualification to the African Cup of Nations in January 2024:
| Nation | Date Qualified | Group | Position | Last AFCON appearance | Best AFCON finish (year) |
| Ivory Coast | (Hosts) | H | 1st/2nd | 2022 | Champions (1992, 2015) |
| Morocco | March 24 | K | 1st/2nd | 2022 | Champions (1976) |
| Algeria | March 27 | F | 1st | 2022 | Champions |
| Burkina Faso | March 28 | B | 1st/2nd | 2022 | 2nd (2013) |
| Senegal | March 28 | L | 1st | 2022 | Champions (2022) |
| South Africa | March 28 | K | 1st/2nd | 2019 | Champions (1996) |
| Tunisia | March 28 | J | 1st/2nd | 2022 | Champions (2004) |
| Egypt | June 14 | D | 1st/2nd | 2022 | Champions (1957, 1959, 1986,
1998, 2006, 2008, 2010) |
| Equatorial Guinea | June 17 | J | 1st/2nd | 2022 | 4th (2015) |
| Zambia | June 17 | H | 1st/2nd | 2015 | Champions (2012) |
| Nigeria | June 18 | A | 1st/2nd | 2022 | Champions (1980, 1994, 2013) |
| Guinea Bissau | June 18 | A | 1st/2nd | 2022 | 14th (2017) |
| Cape Verde | June 18 | B | 1st/2nd | 2022 | 7th (2013) |
| Mali | June 18 | G | 1st/2nd | 2022 | 2nd (1972) |
AFCON qualifiers 2023 Unconfirmed spots
Given below are the unconfirmed spots:
| Nation | Date qualified | Group | Position |
| Group C (1st place) | TBD | C | 1st |
| Group C (2nd place) | TBD | C | 2nd |
| Group D (2nd place) | TBD | D | 2nd |
| Group E (1st place) | Sept. 4 | E | 1st |
| Group E (2nd place) | Sept. 4 | E | 2nd |
| Tanzania OR Uganda | Sept. 4 | F | 2nd |
| Gambia OR Congo | Sept. 4 | G | 1st/2nd |
| Group I (1st place) | Sept. 4 | I | 1st |
| Group I (2nd place) | Sept. 4 | I | 2nd |
| Mozambique OR Benin | Sept. 4 | L | 2nd |
Africa Cup of Nations AFCON 2023 qualifiers table, standings, fixtures, and results
The 48 nations left standing were split up into 12 groups of four at the draw on April 19, 2022. To ensure competitively balanced groups, teams were drawn from four separate pots broken down by FIFA rankings. Each group consists of one team selected from each pot.
Kenya (Pot 2) and Zimbabwe (Pot 3) were under FIFA suspension at the time of the draw, but since their suspension was not subsequently lifted, both countries were eliminated from the competition. Their groups (Group C and Group K) will still progress two qualifiers to the finals, meaning only one participant in each group will be eliminated.
Group A
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Nigeria-Q | 12 | 4-0-1 | +12 |
| 2. | Guinea-Bissau-Q | 10 | 3-1-1 | +5 |
| 3. | Sierra Leone | 5 | 1-2-2 | 0 |
| 4. | Sao Tome & Principe | 1 | 0-1-4 | -17 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| June 9, 2022 | Guinea-Bissau 5-1 Sao Tome & Principe | – |
| June 9, 2022 | Nigeria 2-1 Sierra Leone | – |
| June 13, 2022 | Sao Tome & Principe 0-10 Nigeria | – |
| June 13, 2022 | Sierra Leone 2-2 Guinea-Bissau | – |
| March 22, 2023 | Sierra Leone 2-2 Sao Tome & Principe | – |
| March 24, 2023 | Nigeria 0-1 Guinea-Bissau | – |
| March 26, 2023 | Sao Tome & Principe 0-2 Sierra Leone | – |
| March 27, 2023 | Guinea-Bissau 0-1 Nigeria | – |
| June 14 2023 | Sao Tome & Principe 0-1 Guinea-Bissau | – |
| June 18, 2023 | Sierra Leone 2-3 Nigeria | – |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Nigeria vs. Sao Tome & Principe | TBD |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Guinea-Bissau vs. Sierra Leone | TBD |
Group B
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Burkina Faso-Q | 10 | 3-1-1 | +3 |
| 2. | Cape Verde-Q | 10 | 3-1-1 | +3 |
| 3. | Togo | 5 | 1-2-2 | -1 |
| 4. | Eswatini | 2 | 0-2-3 | -5 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 3, 2022 | Togo 2-2 Eswatini | – |
| Jun. 3, 2022 | Burkina Faso 2-0 Cape Verde | – |
| Jun. 7, 2022 | Eswatini 1-3 Burkina Faso | – |
| Jun. 7, 2022 | Cape Verde 2-0 Togo | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Cape Verde 0-0 Eswatini | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Burkina Faso 1-0 Togo | – |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Togo 1-1 Burkina Faso | – |
| Jun. 18, 2023 | Cape Verde 3-1 Burkina Faso | – |
| Jun. 18, 2023 | Eswatini 0-2 Togo | – |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Burkina Faso vs. Eswatini | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Togo vs. Cape Verde | 17:00 |
Group C
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Namibia | 5 | 1-2-0 | +1 |
| 2. | Cameroon | 4 | 1-1-1 | 0 |
| 3. | Burundi | 1 | 0-1-1 | -1 |
| 4. | Kenya | — | — | — |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 4, 2022 | Namibia 1-1 Burundi | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 9, 2022 | Burundi 0-1 Cameroon | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Cameroon 1-1 Namibia | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Namibia 2-1 Cameroon | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 20, 2023 | Burundi vs. Namibia | 14:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Cameroon vs. Burundi | 17:00 |
Group D
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Egypt-Q | 12 | 4-0-1 | +6 |
| 2. | Guinea | 9 | 3-0-2 | +4 |
| 3. | Ethiopia | 3 | 1-0-3 | -3 |
| 4. | Malawi | 3 | 1-0-3 | -6 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| June 5, 2022 | Malawi 2-1 Ethiopia | – |
| June 5, 2022 | Egypt 1-0 Guinea | – |
| June 9, 2022 | Guinea 1-0 Malawi | – |
| June 9, 2022 | Ethiopia 2-0 Egypt | – |
| March 24, 2023 | Egypt 2-0 Malawi | – |
| March 24, 2023 | Guinea 2-0 Ethiopia | – |
| March 27, 2023 | Ethiopia 1-3 Guinea | – |
| March 28, 2023 | Malawi 0-4 Egypt | HIGHLIGHTS |
| June 14 2023 | Guinea 1-2 Egypt | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sep. 20, 2023 | Ethiopia vs. Malawi | 15:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Egypt vs. Ethiopia | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Malawi vs. Guinea | 17:00 |
Group E
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Ghana | 9 | 2-3-0 | +4 |
| 2. | Angola | 8 | 2-2-1 | +1 |
| 3. | Central African Rep. | 7 | 2-1-2 | +3 |
| 4. | Madagascar | 2 | 0-2-3 | -8 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 1, 2022 | Angola 2-1 Central African Rep. | – |
| Jun. 1, 2022 | Ghana 3-0 Madagascar | – |
| Jun. 5, 2022 | Central African Rep. 1-1 Ghana | – |
| Jun. 5, 2022 | Madagascar 1-1 Angola | – |
| Mar. 23, 2023 | Madagascar 0-3 Central African Rep. | – |
| Mar. 23, 2023 | Ghana 1-0 Angola | – |
| Mar. 27, 2023 | Central African Rep. 2-0 Madagascar | – |
| Mar. 27, 2023 | Angola 1-1 Ghana | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 17, 2023 | Central African Rep. 1-2 Angola | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 18, 2023 | Madagascar 0-0 Ghana | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Ghana vs. Central African Rep. | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Angola vs. Madagascar | 17:00 |
Group F
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Algeria-Q | 15 | 5-0-0 | +7 |
| 2. | Tanzania | 7 | 2-1-2 | -1 |
| 3. | Uganda | 4 | 1-1-3 | -3 |
| 4. | Niger | 2 | 0-2-3 | -3 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 4, 2022 | Niger 1-1 Tanzania | – |
| Jun. 4, 2022 | Algeria 2-0 Uganda | – |
| Jun. 8, 2022 | Uganda 1-1 Niger | – |
| Jun. 8, 2022 | Tanzania 0-2 Algeria | – |
| Mar. 23, 2023 | Algeria 2-1 Niger | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Uganda 0-1 Tanzania | – |
| Mar. 27, 2023 | Niger 0-1 Algeria | – |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Tanzania 0-1 Uganda | – |
| Jun. 18, 2023 | Tanzania 1-0 Niger | – |
| Jun. 18, 2023 | Uganda 1-2 Algeria | – |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Algeria vs. Tanzania | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Niger vs. Uganda | 17:00 |
Group G
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Mali-Q | 12 | 4-0-1 | +9 |
| 2. | Gambia | 9 | 3-0-2 | 0 |
| 3. | Congo | 6 | 2-0-3 | -5 |
| 4. | South Sudan | 3 | 1-0-4 | -4 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 4, 2022 | Gambia 1-0 South Sudan | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 4, 2022 | Mali 4-0 Congo | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 8, 2022 | Congo 1-0 Gambia | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 9, 2022 | South Sudan 1-3 Mali | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Mar. 23, 2023 | Congo 1-2 South Sudan | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Mali 2-0 Gambia | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Mar. 27, 2023 | South Sudan 0-1 Congo | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Gambia 1-0 Mali | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 14, 2023 | South Sudan 2-3 Gambia | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Jun. 18, 2023 | Congo 0-2 Mali | HIGHLIGHTS |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Mali vs. South Sudan | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Gambia vs. Congo | 17:00 |
Group H
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L |
| 1. | Zambia-Q | 12 | 4-0-1 |
| 2. | Ivory Coast-Q | 10 | 3-1-1 |
| 3. | Comoros | 6 | 2-0-3 |
| 4. | Lesotho | 1 | 0-1-4 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 3, 2022 | Comoros 2-0 Lesotho | – |
| Jun. 3, 2022 | Ivory Coast 3-1 Zambia | – |
| Jun. 7, 2022 | Zambia 2-1 Comoros | – |
| Jun. 9, 2022 | Lesotho 0-0 Ivory Coast | – |
| Mar. 23, 2023 | Zambia 3-1 Lesotho | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Ivory Coast 3-1 Comoros | – |
| Mar. 26, 2023 | Lesotho 0-2 Zambia | – |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Comoros 0-2 Ivory Coast | – |
| Jun. 17, 2023 | Zambia 3-0 Ivory Coast | – |
| Jun. 17, 2023 | Lesotho 0-1 Comoros | – |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Ivory Coast vs. Lesotho | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Comoros vs. Zambia | 17:00 |
Group I
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | DR Congo | 7 | 2-1-2 | +2 |
| 2. | Gabon | 7 | 2-1-2 | -1 |
| 3. | Sudan | 6 | 2-0-2 | -2 |
| 4. | Mauritania | 5 | 1-2-1 | +1 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 4, 2022 | Mauritania 3-0 Sudan | – |
| Jun. 4, 2022 | DR Congo 0-1 Gabon | – |
| Jun. 8, 2022 | Gabon 0-0 Mauritania | – |
| Jun. 8, 2022 | Sudan 2-1 DR Congo | – |
| Mar. 23, 2023 | Gabon 1-0 Sudan | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | DR Congo 3-1 Mauritania | – |
| Mar. 27, 2023 | Sudan 1-0 Gabon | – |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Mauritania 1-1 DR Congo | – |
| Jun. 18, 2023 | Gabon 0-2 DR Congo | – |
| Jun. 20, 2023 | Sudan vs. Mauritania | 19:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | DR Congo vs. Sudan | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Mauritania vs. Gabon | 17:00 |
Group J
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Equatorial Guinea-Q | 12 | 3-0-1 | +1 |
| 2. | Tunisia-Q | 10 | 3-1-0 | +8 |
| 3. | Botswana | 4 | 0-1-2 | -2 |
| 4. | Libya | 3 | 1-0-3 | -5 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 1, 2022 | Libya 1-0 Botswana | – |
| Jun. 2, 2022 | Tunisia 4-0 Equatorial Guinea | – |
| Jun. 5, 2022 | Botswana 0-0 Tunisia | – |
| Jun. 6, 2022 | Equatorial Guinea 2-0 Libya | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Equatorial Guinea 2-0 Botswana | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Tunisia 3-0 Libya | – |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Botswana 2-3 Equatorial Guinea | – |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Libya 0-1 Tunisia | – |
| Jun. 17, 2023 | Equatorial Guinea 1-0 Tunisia | – |
| Jun. 17, 2023 | Botswana 1-0 Libya | – |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Tunisia vs. Botswana | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Libya vs. Equatorial Guinea | 17:00 |
Group K
Table and standings
| Pos | Team | Pts | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | South Africa-Q | 7 | 2-1-1 | +1 |
| 2. | Morocco-Q | 6 | 2-0-1 | +2 |
| 3. | Liberia | 1 | 0-1-2 | -3 |
| 4. | Zimbabwe | — | — | — |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 9, 2022 | Morocco 2-1 South Africa | – |
| Jun. 13, 2022 | Liberia 0-2 Morocco | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | South Africa 2-2 Liberia | – |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Liberia 1-2 South Africa | – |
| Jun. 17, 2023 | South Africa 2-1 Morocco | – |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Morocco vs. Liberia | 17:00 |
Group L
Table and standings
| Position | Team | Points | W-D-L | GD |
| 1. | Senegal-Q | 13 | 4-1-0 | +8 |
| 2. | Mozambique | 7 | 2-1-2 | -4 |
| 3. | Benin | 5 | 1-2-2 | 0 |
| 4. | Rwanda | 2 | 0-2-3 | -6 |
Fixtures and results
| Date | Match | Time (UTC +1) |
| Jun. 2, 2022 | Mozambique 1-1 Rwanda | – |
| Jun. 4, 2022 | Senegal 3-1 Benin | – |
| Jun. 7, 2022 | Rwanda 0-1 Senegal | – |
| Jun. 8, 2022 | Benin 0-1 Mozambique | – |
| Mar. 22, 2023 | Benin 1-1 Rwanda | – |
| Mar. 24, 2023 | Senegal 5-1 Mozambique | – |
| Mar. 28, 2023 | Mozambique 0-1 Senegal | – |
| Mar. 29, 2023 | Rwanda 0-3 Benin | *FORFEIT* |
| Jun. 17, 2023 | Benin 1-1 Senegal | – |
| Jun. 18, 2023 | Rwanda 0-2 Mozambique | – |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Senegal vs. Rwanda | 17:00 |
| Sep. 4, 2023 | Mozambique vs. Benin | 17:00 |
AFCON Qualifiers 2023 preliminary round
The higher-ranked teams among the preliminary round participants were seeded in the final draw. These teams played the second leg of this preliminary round at home. The games took place in late March of 2022.
Given below are the final table standings with the teams to advance given in bold:
| Unseeded | Aggregate Goals | Seeded | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Eritrea | cancelled | Botswana | — | — |
| Sao Tome & Principe |
4-3 | Mauritius | 1-0 | 3-3 |
| Djibouti | 2-5 | South Sudan | 2-4 | 1-0 |
| Seychelles | 1-3 | Lesotho | 0-0 | 3-1 |
| Somalia | 1-5 | Eswatini | 0-3 | 2-1 |
| Chad | 2-3 | Gambia | 0-1 | 2-2 |
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