CAF Announces Dates for Champions League and Confederation Cup 2026-2027
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) sent an official letter to all member national associations, revealing details about club participation in the CAF Champions League and the Confederation Cup for the 2026-2027 season, along with registration dates and stages of the competitions.
CAF confirmed that the deadline for registering participating clubs through the Competition Management System (CMS) will be July 25, 2026, with federations required to submit the final standings of the local league and cup to approve the qualifying clubs.
12 countries reserve the right to include two teams.
According to the continental ranking based on the results of the last five years, 12 countries retained the right to involve two teams each in both the Champions League and the Confederation Cup, which are:
"Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, South Africa, Nigeria, Sudan, Tanzania, Mali, Angola, Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of the Congo."
The cancellation of teams transitioning from the Champions League to the Confederation Cup continues.
CAF emphasized the continuation of the new system applied in recent editions, where clubs eliminated from the second preliminary round of the CAF Champions League will not move to the Confederation Cup. This increases the importance of the preliminary rounds and reduces the margin for error for the participating teams.
He also confirmed that the clubs advancing from the second preliminary round of the Confederation Cup will directly qualify for the group stage.
The preliminary rounds begin in September.
The first preliminary round competitions will begin in a few days.
Departure: September 4, 5, and 6, 2026
Return: September 11, 12, and 13, 2026
The second preliminary round will be held in October.
Departure: October 16, 17, and 18, 2026
Return: October 23, 24, and 25, 2026
The group stage begins in November.
CAF has set the end of November as the start date for the group stage, with the six rounds taking place between November 2026 and January 2027, before moving on to the knockout stages.
The quarter-finals will be held in late February and early March 2027, while the semi-final matches will be played in April 2027.
CAF is expected to later determine the final date for the Champions League and Confederation Cup finals, which are to be held between May 9 and 31, 2027.
Registration periods
CAF has designated four different periods for player registration:
From August 1 to 15, 2026, for the first qualifying round.
From August 16 to September 30, 2026, for the second preliminary round.
From October 1 to 31, 2026, for the group stage.
From January 1 to 31, 2027, for the final adjustments before the critical stages.
It also required clubs to register any new player at least 72 hours before the match to be eligible to participate.
Increase in the number of registered players.
One of the most notable regulatory decisions is allowing each club to register 40 players on its roster for the season, with the possibility of having 9 substitutes and 9 officials on the bench during matches, in addition to continuing the rule of 5 substitutions per match.
This speech represents the official roadmap for African clubs before the start of a new continental season, as CAF seeks to ensure clarity of regulations and schedules early on and to give clubs sufficient time to prepare for the competitions.
CAF confirmed that the deadline for registering participating clubs through the Competition Management System (CMS) will be July 25, 2026, with federations required to submit the final standings of the local league and cup to approve the qualifying clubs.
12 countries reserve the right to include two teams.
According to the continental ranking based on the results of the last five years, 12 countries retained the right to involve two teams each in both the Champions League and the Confederation Cup, which are:
"Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, South Africa, Nigeria, Sudan, Tanzania, Mali, Angola, Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of the Congo."
The cancellation of teams transitioning from the Champions League to the Confederation Cup continues.
CAF emphasized the continuation of the new system applied in recent editions, where clubs eliminated from the second preliminary round of the CAF Champions League will not move to the Confederation Cup. This increases the importance of the preliminary rounds and reduces the margin for error for the participating teams.
He also confirmed that the clubs advancing from the second preliminary round of the Confederation Cup will directly qualify for the group stage.
The preliminary rounds begin in September.
The first preliminary round competitions will begin in a few days.
Departure: September 4, 5, and 6, 2026
Return: September 11, 12, and 13, 2026
The second preliminary round will be held in October.
Departure: October 16, 17, and 18, 2026
Return: October 23, 24, and 25, 2026
The group stage begins in November.
CAF has set the end of November as the start date for the group stage, with the six rounds taking place between November 2026 and January 2027, before moving on to the knockout stages.
The quarter-finals will be held in late February and early March 2027, while the semi-final matches will be played in April 2027.
CAF is expected to later determine the final date for the Champions League and Confederation Cup finals, which are to be held between May 9 and 31, 2027.
Registration periods
CAF has designated four different periods for player registration:
From August 1 to 15, 2026, for the first qualifying round.
From August 16 to September 30, 2026, for the second preliminary round.
From October 1 to 31, 2026, for the group stage.
From January 1 to 31, 2027, for the final adjustments before the critical stages.
It also required clubs to register any new player at least 72 hours before the match to be eligible to participate.
Increase in the number of registered players.
One of the most notable regulatory decisions is allowing each club to register 40 players on its roster for the season, with the possibility of having 9 substitutes and 9 officials on the bench during matches, in addition to continuing the rule of 5 substitutions per match.
This speech represents the official roadmap for African clubs before the start of a new continental season, as CAF seeks to ensure clarity of regulations and schedules early on and to give clubs sufficient time to prepare for the competitions.
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