Since the World Cup expanded to 48 teams from 2026, Africa has nine direct places and a chance at a tenth through the intercontinental play-off. Here is how CAF's qualifying works.
Nine groups
For the 2026 World Cup, CAF drew its member nations into nine groups of six teams (one group had five after a withdrawal). Teams played each other home and away over two years. The nine group winners qualified directly for the World Cup.
The runners-up play-off
The four best group runners-up, compared across all groups, entered a CAF play-off tournament. Its winner advanced to the FIFA intercontinental play-off, where teams from several confederations competed for the final World Cup places.
How this compares with the past
From 1998 to 2022 Africa had five World Cup places (six in 2010, when South Africa qualified as hosts). The format changed from cycle to cycle: in 2014 and 2022, for example, qualifying ended with ten group winners playing two-legged play-offs for the five places, which often eliminated strong teams on a single bad night. The new system rewards consistency over a full group campaign.
Seeding and draws
Teams are seeded using the FIFA ranking, so a few ranking places can decide whether a nation faces one strong rival or two. See how the FIFA ranking works.
Africa at the World Cup
African teams have grown more competitive at the finals, with Morocco's semi-final in 2022 the best result so far. Read Africa at the World Cup and see which nation has played at the most World Cups.
Follow qualifying
Every qualifier involving African teams appears on our fixtures page, with an Elo-based preview. Team records in qualifying are on pages such as Senegal in World Cup qualifying.