Nigeria will face familiar rivals and co-hosts Tanzania, alongside Madagascar and Guinea Bissau, in the race for qualification to next summer’s Africa Cup of Nations finals, which will be jointly hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
The four nations were drawn in Group L.
Tuesday’s draw, held at the Egyptian Football Association headquarters in Cairo, saw 48 teams divided into 12 groups of four. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the tournament, scheduled to hold from June 19 to July 17 next year.
Nigeria has previous AFCON qualifying history with all three opponents. The Super Eagles defeated Madagascar home and away during the qualifiers for the 2012 AFCON, while they shared victories with Guinea Bissau in the qualification series for the 2023 finals held in Côte d’Ivoire. Guinea Bissau stunned Nigeria in Abuja before the Eagles secured victory in the reverse fixture in Bissau.
Tanzania also faced Nigeria during the qualifiers for the 2017 AFCON. Both teams played out a goalless draw in Dar es Salaam before the Super Eagles secured a 1-0 win in Uyo, courtesy of a long-range strike from Kelechi Iheanacho.
Hosts of the last edition, Morocco, have been drawn in Group A alongside Gabon, Niger Republic and Lesotho.
Seven-time champions Egypt will face Angola, Malawi and South Sudan in Group B, while five-time winners Cameroon are grouped with Comoros, Namibia and Congo in what appears to be a difficult pool.
AFCON Qualifying Groups
Group A: Morocco, Gabon, Niger Republic, Lesotho
Group B: Egypt, Angola, Malawi, South Sudan
Group C: Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, The Gambia, Somalia
Group D: South Africa, Guinea, Kenya, Eritrea
Group E: DR Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe
Group F: Burkina Faso, Benin Republic, Mauritania, Central African Republic
Group G: Cameroon, Comoros, Namibia, Congo
Group H: Tunisia, Uganda, Libya, Botswana
Group I: Algeria, Zambia, Togo, Burundi
Group J: Senegal, Mozambique, Sudan, Ethiopia
Group K: Mali, Cape Verde, Rwanda, Liberia
Group L: Nigeria, Madagascar, Tanzania, Guinea Bissau
